Chicago Bears Mock Draft: Ryan Poles does a masterful job filling holes
By Ryan Heckman
For simplicity’s sake, we’re going to kick this mock draft off right away. Contrary to a lot of the mocks you’ll see, the Chicago Bears choose to stay put with their picks and take the best available players.
At number nine, general manager Ryan Poles goes straight for one of the biggest needs and takes the draft’s best offensive tackle in Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr. Now, one could argue that Peter Skoronski is the best tackle in the draft, however some view him more as a guard. Johnson is unquestionably a tackle, and the Bears would be fortunate to have his size protecting Justin Fields.
Johnson is 6-foot-6 and weighs 313 pounds, so when you see the word “prototypical” next to a description of his size, it’s spot on. Johnson would come in and immediately fortify either the left or right side, depending on what the Bears did with Braxton Jones.
From here, Chicago’s offensive line looks a whole lot better than it did a year ago, especially if Cody Whitehair and Lucas Patrick are healthy, combined with the newly-signed Nate Davis.
Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles takes his opportunity to go best player available for the remainder of this 2023 mock draft
In the second round, at pick number 53, Poles goes right back to the trenches, much to the joy of Bears fans everywhere. The best edge rusher on the board, and quite frankly, the best player on the board, is USC pass rusher Tuli Tuipulotu.
At 6-foot-3 and 266 pounds, Tuipulotu has the size and ability to play in multiple schemes. Fortunately, he’ll fit nicely at defensive end in the Bears’ 4-3 scheme.
Tuipulotu has a lot of positive traits to like, including very strong hands. He uses his hands well and is technically sound. Combined with his quick get-off, Tuipulotu is well-rounded, crafty and sneaky fast. Possessing the ability to bend around some of the quicker tackles, he’s able to work those guys to the point where it looks silly at times. Before you know it, Tuipulotu is in the back field on many occasions.
As evidenced by his ridiculous numbers last season (13.5 sacks and 22 total tackles for loss) Tuipulotu is NFL-ready and will plug right into this defense as a starter.