Todd McShay has the Chicago Bears addressing the offensive line at No. 9 in his latest mock
It’s mock draft season! The 2023 NFL draft is just weeks away, and Chicago Bears fans across the country and world are wondering what they’ll do on draft day. Obviously, there’s plenty of options. They could go trenches early, where they desperately need help. They could go EDGE rusher to help the pass rush improve. There’s even been rumors about them trading back for more picks. At this point it’s quite unpredictable.
However, NFL draft analysts over at ESPN like Todd McShay have the Chicago Bears going with a familiar face. One of the highest ranked linemen, OT Peter Skoronski from the University of Northwestern. Skoronski is born and raised in Illinois, and many project that he’ll go top fifteen.
But for McShay, he has him going in the top 10 at No. 9 overall to the Bears:
The Bears could address the edge rush — perhaps with Van Ness — after closing out the 2022 season at the bottom of the league in sacks. However, they need to maximize quarterback Justin Fields, and that means protecting him. Chicago allowed a sack on 11.5% of dropbacks last season, the highest rate we’ve seen since the Raiders’ 12.6% in 2006. I like the Nate Davis addition at guard, but Teven Jenkins probably isn’t the answer at tackle opposite Braxton Jones. Jenkins is a better fit on the interior. And while there are concerns about Skoronski’s 32¼-inch arm length, his quickness, balance and snap in his hands stand out.
Peter Skoronski (LT no. 77) can handle anything asked of him in the run game at a high level
Excellent at winning with leverage and power off the snap, but has the athleticism to get to the 2nd level to wipe out LBs+DBs pic.twitter.com/NCYqgvO7Nc
— Connor Rogers (@ConnorJRogers) February 18, 2023
Peter Skoronski making defenders disappear…. pic.twitter.com/pDDQAl5uKK
— Cole Cubelic (@colecubelic) August 27, 2022
This isn’t the first time and won’t be the last time that Skoronski is mocked to the Chicago Bears. He’s a versatile, 6-4 315-pound offensive tackle who can play the guard position as well. He led the country in pass blocking, posting an impressive 93.0 PFF grade.
If this team wants to compete at a high level, a big tackle like Skoronski is needed in order to protect Justin Fields. It’s not the only issue that needs to be addressed in late April, but it’s one of the major ones.
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