The Bears had to wait a long time before getting involved in the NFL Draft before selecting safety Major Wright out of Florida with the 75th overall pick (3rd round) of the NFL Draft.  Wright is 6′0″, 205 pounds but he’s a tad slow running a 4.55 40.  That means he will probably be a strong safety in the pros but he is great on run support so he could excel there.  Wright played in 14 games (12 starts) for the Gators last season and he had 32 tackles, broke up 2 passes and he had 3 interceptions.  Wright played in 41 games (33 starts) in his three years with Florida in which he had 165 tackles, broke up 10 passes, he had 8 interceptions, forced 4 fumbles and he recovered 1 fumble.  This was a solid first pick for the Bears.

The Bears are still paying for Jay Cutler this season and the result is that they don’t pick until #75 (third round) overall.  The Bears only have 5 total picks so they are hoping that some good players slide to them.  The Bears have needs at OT, FS and CB heading into the draft.  They will likely be targeting OT Selvish Capers, OT Jared Veldheer, CB Jerome Murphy, CB Amari Spievey, CB Brandon Ghee and S T.J. Ward with their first pick of the draft.

PROJECTED FIRST PICK OF THE DRAFT:  OT, Jared Veldheer, Hillsdale (Michigan) 

The Chicago Bears drafted 9 players last April in the draft and four of them didn’t play a down and two of them were cut before the season even started.  WR/KR Johnny Knox was the best player the Bears picked last April.  They took him in the 5th round (#140 overall) out of tiny Abilene Christian.  He played in 15 games for the Bears last season and he caught 45 passes for 527 yards (11.7 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Knox also returned 32 kickoffs for 927 yards (29.0 avg) with 1 TD return.  Knox returned 1 punt for 0 yards and he made 5 tackles last season for the Bears.  In the sixth round (#190 overall) the Bears selected safety Al Afalvava out of Oregon State.  He played in 13 games for the Bears last season and he made 53 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, had 2 sacks, forced 1 fumble and he defensed 7 passes.  The rest of the draft crop was a total waste so far.  DT Jarron Gilbert was the Bears’ first selection in the draft as they picked him in the third round out of San Jose State (#68 overall).  He played in 4 games for the Bears last season and he made 1 whole tackle.  WR Juaquin Iglesius was also selected in the third round (#99 overall) out of Oklahoma.  He only played in 1 game for the Bears and he didn’t catch any passes while making 1 whole tackle.  DE Henry Melton was picked in the 4th round (#105 overall) out of Texas.  He spent his rookie year on the Injured Reserve list without playing in any games.  CB D.J. Moore was also selected in the 4th round (#119 overall) out of Vanderbilt.  He played in 3 games but he didn’t make any tackles.  Linebacker Marcus Freeman (5th round, #154 overall) out of Ohio State and WR Derek Kinder (7th round, #251 overall) both got cut without playing for the Bears.  Freeman is now with the Texans.  OG Lance Louis (7th round, #246 overall) is still with the Bears but he didn’t play a down as a rookie.

GRADE FOR 2009:  C-

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  C-

The Bears really found themselves a player when they picked 23-year old WR Johnny Knox out of Abilene Christian in the fifth round of last April’s NFL Draft.  Knox has played in all 10 games for the Bears this season and he has caught 32 passes for 376 yards (11.8 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Knox has also excelled on special teams as he has returned 25 kickoffs for 699 yards (28.0 avg) with a TD return (102 yarder).  It’s good drafting to find a guy in the fifth round that is averaging 107.5 all purpose yards per game in his rookie season.  The Bears have high hopes for Knox in the future.

When the Bears selected Johnny Knox in the 5th round out of Abilene Christian they weren’t expecting much.  But he is proving to be a steal as he is turning into Jay Cutler’s favorite WR.  Knox has caught 8 passes for 152 yards (19.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  If Knox continues to play well he could establish himself as a legit #1 WR because the Bears don’t have one right now.