Bears add two cornerstone players in Dane Brugler’s Mock Draft 1.0

We’re inching ever so close to Chicago Bears season. You know the one: when free agency and the NFL Draft reign supreme.

Let’s face it, it’s all we’ve had in recent years. The Bears haven’t sniffed the playoffs since 2020 when they backed in as a wild card team and lost to the New Orleans Saints, 21-9.

The last real playoff season was 2018. That one ended with the infamous double doink.

So, yeah, Bears fans need a reason to hang onto this team, and that reason traditionally comes via high draft picks and overpaid free agents.

The 2024 NFL Draft is no different … well, maybe it is. The Chicago Bears currently hold the No. 1 overall pick (via the Carolina Panthers) in a draft with a near-generational quarterback prospect (USC’s Caleb Williams).

I published Caleb Williams’ scouting report for our premium Bears Talkers here.

Anytime a quarterback with the hype Williams has (it’s justified, by the way) is in a draft class, the team that ends the season with the No. 1 pick essentially has the golden ticket.

In the first 2024 mock draft from The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, the Bears cash in that ticket and formally move on from Justin Fields.

Brugler isn’t as high on Williams as I am. In fact, he has UNC’s Drake Maye ranked higher right now but still sends Williams to Chicago.

“The next step in this “choose your own adventure” epic: Which quarterback should be the pick at No. 1?” Brugler wrote. “It is much too early in the process to answer with any conviction (the Bears don’t know, so we sure as heck don’t know). I’ve heard from some Bears fans uninterested in drafting Drake Maye, “another North Carolina quarterback” (Chicago took Mitchell Trubisky out of North Carolina in 2017), and from others who don’t want Caleb Williams because he is “an indecisive passer like Fields.

“Both reasons are understandably jaded based on the Bears’ last two first-round quarterbacks, but Williams and Maye are much more than those arguments suggest. Despite Maye being higher in my personal rankings, I still believe Williams is the favorite to be the top pick.”

I really think Caleb Williams is at the point where he does unnecessary stuff in the pocket just to stunt on defenses for highlightspic.twitter.com/YhZ07LrUqz

— Levi Edwards (@theleviedwards) September 24, 2023

The PTSD (Post Trubisky Stress Disorder) that Bears fans will feel during the 2024 draft process is very real. It’s bad enough that Maye plays at the same college Trubisky did. It’s worse that he wears the same number. He sort of looks like Trubisky, too.

It’s nightmare fuel.

But let’s be honest: it’d be foolish for Bears fans not to want Maye because of those things. Maybe he’s the quarterback who can exorcise the Trubisky demons, he can be the hero Bears fans need to be rescued from the curse of passing on Patrick Mahomes.

Still, if I’m Ryan Poles, and I’ve moved on from Justin Fields, I’m selecting Caleb Williams … for now. The 2024 NFL draft process is long, and there are always moments that can flip a draft narrative upside down. Maybe Williams” emotions get the best of him, maybe he has a quirky press conference or two. Maybe his pro day goes awry or news of him being disliked by his teammates leaks.

But until any of that happens, Williams is the guy.

Unless, of course, he doesn’t declare for the draft.

Bears protect Caleb Williams with second first-round pick

With the quarterback out of the way at No. 1 overall, Brugler does his part in his 2024 mock draft to protect that massive investment for the Chicago Bears. With their second first-round pick, which right now is No. 4 overall, the Bears add a blue-chip offensive tackle for the second year in a row.

This time, it’s Notre Dame’s Joe Alt, and Brugler’s logic is sound.

“When you draft in the top five, the goal is to find an organizational cornerstone that also addresses a pressing need,” Brugler wrote. “This class offers a pair of outstanding offensive tackles who are not only blue-chip prospects but would also give Chicago a much-needed upgrade at a key position.

“A standout pass protector and run blocker, Alt has a massive body with coordinated feet and rare recovery skills, which will have him ready to start as a 21-year-old rookie.”

There’s no denying Alt’s status as an elite prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft. He could be the first tackle selected despite the love for Penn State’s Olu Fashanu. Both players are special.

But is this a great match for the Bears, who have Darnell Wright entrenched at right tackle and an underrated Braxton Jones doing a fine job at left tackle? Jones has proven through his first two seasons that he is a bonafide … and quality … starting left tackle in the NFL. Is that the position the Bears want to upgrade with such a high pick? My gut feeling says no.

Instead, I’d wager on a receiver like Malik Nabers (LSU) or Brock Bowers (TE, Georgia) to rank higher on Chicago’s must-haves. The Bears” offense has struggled to score points this year, it needs more playmakers to complement DJ Moore. And if you’re making the biggest investment a franchise can make at quarterback … spending the No. 1 overall pick on Caleb Williams … you have to give him weapons.

With Marvin Harrison Jr. off the board in Dane Brugler’s mock draft, the next logical pick is Nabers. He has over 1,500 receiving yards this season and has 34 catches of 20 or more yards. He’d bring much-needed juice to Chicago’s passing game.

Imagine Caleb Williams tossing dimes to DJ Moore and Malik Nabers? That’s fun.

You know what else is fun? The NFL Draft season. We’ll have every angle of the 2024 NFL Draft covered here on Bears Talk. Make sure you become a Premium Bears Talker to unlock all scouting reports we’ll publish over the next few months. You’ll get rid of all the ads, and you can join the conversation by dropping your mock drafts, grades, rankings, etc. in the comments.