Post by davidl on May 1, 2021 13:44:12 GMT -6
David, Leno was tried at RT years ago and was awful. He's a rare player who is a way better LT than RT.
Meinerz looks like a promising prospect I agree but he's from a tiny Div 3 school--expect his adjustment to the NFL to be a substantial one. Even if ultimately successful, I predict he doesn't start year 1 which is exactly what his draft position (end of round 3) tells you as well.
Radunz is another good prospect also from a small program--we will see how quickly he's ready to face NFL competition. There was no way to know in advance whether or not he would make it to #52. In fact, there was a huge run of OTs from #39 to #52 and he was THE LAST of the "Tier 2" players taken, barely making it to the Bears original slot. By moving up, Pace got the pick of the litter and a player almost universally regarded as a clear-cut 1st round talent. No one, repeat NO ONE, called Radunz a 1st round talent.
I understand your thinking and here and I share it to some degree. I wanted that 3rd round pick too. The way I look at it is this:
Pace came into this draft with 2 huge, glaring needs, both positions the Chicago Bears have frankly neglected, ignored, and massively screwed up at for a long, long time. He made damn sure to get the two very best players he could realistically get at those two positions, come hell or high water. You may not like the trades but you can't deny the quality. He got the BEST QB and BEST OT the Bears possibly could have come away from this draft. He nailed those 2 spots.
That's all true. I am looking back at what could have happened. We have to see how Jenkins, Radunz, and Meinerz develop over the next year or two before we can know with any certainty which result would have been better. The thing we will never know is what we could have gotten by trading down in the second round to get more picks, which is what some people around here wanted before Pace pulled the rabbit out of the hat with Jenkins.