Chicago Bears 2021 NFL Draft: Prospects with hometown ties
By Ryan Heckman
Chicago Bears Draft Prospects with Hometown Ties: OT Royce Newman
Hometown: Nashville, IL
Last season, the Bears received some strong play down the stretch from their offensive line. Finally, it had appeared they figured things out as David Montgomery was a particular beneficiary.
But, this offseason, the team parted ways with veteran starting right tackle Bobby Massie and appear to be headed for another addition or two up front. On the left side, Charles Leno returns as the starter. However, even Leno could use someone to push him.
The interior of the line should be pretty set with James Daniels, Cody Whitehair and one of Sam Mustipher or Germain Ifedi. The starting line could look one of a few ways, with the Bears possessing a few guys who can play multiple positions. Speaking of which, the Bears could look at another potential multi-positional player late in the draft.
Mississippi’s Royce Newman is a 6-foot-5 offensive tackle that projects as a player who could possibly switch over to guard as a pro. For now, he’s a tackle. But, his footwork and agility give him the luxury of being able to find success at guard as well.
Newman is not one of the top linemen in the draft, and will probably get selected in the sixth round or later. Because the Bears have three sixth rounders, Newman is definitely worth a look.
For him to make the leap, Newman will have to get stronger. He has room to add muscle and acts more as a positional blocker than anything else. He doesn’t move the pile, but mostly acts as a wall. That’s not always a terrible thing, but in the run game, you want movers. Newman has to add that to his arsenal if he is to become a legitimate tackle in the NFL.