For most of the pre-NFL Draft process, the Chicago Bears have been tied to defensive prospects, and for very good reasons. The offense already seems all set, but they struggled to get stops way too often last season.
Considering that, it's not much of a surprise to see the likes of Zion Young from Missouri and Emmanuel McNeil-Warren from Toledo as projected selections. Nevertheless, the Bears can't afford to let Peter Woods get past them at No. 25 if he's still up for grabs.
Peter Woods Should Change the Bears' Entire Draft Plans
Watching the Cincinnati Bengals trade the No. 10 pick for Dexter Lawrence reaffirms the notion that this class is particularly thin at defensive tackle. That's why if the best prospect at the position is available, the Bears just have to take him.
While Woods isn't particularly big at 6-foot-2 and 298 pounds, the Clemson star can still bulk up and fill out his frame. Also, what he lacks in size, he makes up for with otherworldly explosiveness and strength, being almost impossible to block once he sets his feet.
In 35 collegiate games with the Tigers, he had 84 total tackles, 14.5 TFLs, five sacks, and two forced fumbles.
He has extensive experience at both one and two-gap play, and his ability to recover and get past the blocker across from him is impressive for a guy his size. The Bears struggled with interior defense, with Grady Jarrett and Gervon Dexter Sr. failing to put pressure at the line of scrimmage.
Woods isn't going to wow players with his size and will always be a bit of a tweener, but his ability to wreak havoc in the interior and collapse the pocket while shaking off double teams should translate to the pros pretty easily.
The Bears ranked 27th in rushing yards allowed last season (134.5), and they only averaged 2.1 sacks per game. Clearly, they need some help in the interior of the defense and getting to the quarterback, and Woods could give them exactly that.
Unfortunately, he might not even be up for grabs by the time the Bears are on the clock, as the Los Angeles Chargers could also take him a couple of picks earlier. Still, with Kayden McDonald from Ohio State and McNeil-Warren also tied to Jim Harbaugh's team, there's a slight chance that he'll be there.
The Bears have already shown that their offense is far ahead of schedule, and they shouldn't find much trouble putting up points against the best of them. Now, it's time their defense holds its end of the bargain and also keeps opposing offenses off the field.
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