Chicago Bears: Biggest ripple effects from 2023 NFL Draft picks

The 2023 NFL Draft is in the books, and the Chicago Bears are much more equipped going into this season than they were going into the 2022 campaign.

General manager Ryan Poles took a big step forward in improving the roster, addressing several needs all over the place, especially building in the trenches. Poles’ draft haul included three defensive tackles and a starting offensive tackle in Darnell Wright to help further protect Justin Fields.

Overall, though, it was a well-balanced draft with some tremendous value throughout. Poles made a couple of trades, continuing to build draft capital for 2024 while finding talent for this year.

When looking at where the Bears go from here, and how the new rookie class will impact the team going forward, there are some ripple effects that will likely take place. Let’s dig in to some of the bigger impacts from this class, starting in the secondary.

Ripple effects from the Chicago Bears’ 2023 NFL Draft class: Kindle Vildor goes back to the bench

When the Bears drafted Miami cornerback Tyrique Stevenson in Round 2, their secondary became complete. Last year, Kindle Vildor took a step forward and played much better than anyone had anticipated. However, he’s better suited to be a reserve.

Now that Stevenson is in the fold, that’s exactly what they Bears can do; move Vildor back to a reserve role.

Stevenson has great size at six feet tall and is a physical cornerback who plays with an assertiveness about him. He and Johnson will be a strong duo on the outside, which will then allow Kyler Gordon to stick in the slot where he was comfortable last year.

In addition to Vildor being a reserve, the Bears will also have rookies Terrell Smith and Kendall Williamson competing for position on the depth chart. The Bears ended up with three corners taken in this draft, proving Poles was serious about improving depth there.