Durkin: Bears Were Among NFL Combine Winners
By Dan Durkin-
(CBS) Now that the dust has settled from the 2015 NFL Scouting Combine, Bears general manager Ryan Pace can exhale. Even if only momentarily. When assessing the Bears' most pressing needs on both sides of the ball -- speed off the edge on defense and a receiver who can take the top off of a defense -- with the draft's strengths, there are clear intersection points.
As such, one can safely conclude Pace will have elite talent available on the board when he makes the biggest decision of his vernal career as the team's general manager on April 30.
That's not to minimize the decisions he's made with regards to the coaching staff. Hiring John Fox was a coup. Things broke Chicago's way when Fox became available, and in an un-Bear-like manner, they seized the moment. What followed Fox to Halas Hall were credible, established and respected NFL coaches who immediately bring legitimacy to the Bears' football operations.
With capable coaches in place, now the hard part begins for Pace -- adding young talent to a team that desperately lacks it.
The cupboard was left bare for former general manager Phil Emery, who then proceeded to fill it back up mostly with expensive, perishable items nearing their expiration dates. The challenge now becomes taking inventory of what is worth keeping and prioritizing what needs to be added to the mix.
Following the timeline of the pending NFL league year, free agency (which officially starts March 10) will be the first order of business. The Bears are currently in the midst of self-scouting and familiarizing themselves with the roster.
With a defensive scheme change underway, a degree of difficulty is added to the personnel assessment on that side of the ball. Projecting players who may or may not transcend scheme without practicing involves educated guesswork. Fortunately for the Bears, they have more than 100 combined years of NFL coaching experience on the defensive staff and are well-positioned from a cap standpoint to fill glaring holes in free agency.
As it stands, the Bears have 51 players under contract, totaling $116.7 million and a $1.5 million carryover credit. Initial reports suggest the team cap limit will be no less than $143 million. Assuming the rookie class will cost roughly $6 million, the Bears have approximately $22 million of free cap space heading into free agency.
That amount puts the Bears in the top one-third of cap space among the NFL, which affords them flexibility, but their list of needs is long.
As Pace's history from New Orleans shows, the Saints used all avenues to build their roster, leaning heavily on free agency. But during his introductory press conference in Chicago, Pace was steadfast that the team must build through the draft.
"We'll be aggressive in our approach, but for the Bears, to have sustained success, we must build through the draft," Pace said. "The recipe to winning Super Bowls is stringing successful drafts together again and again. We are not just collecting athletes, we are acquiring football players that fit the Chicago Bears. There will be a major emphasis on character, toughness, instincts and intelligence."
Using NFL draft history as a guide, over the past five seasons the most frequently selected positions among top-seven picks are offensive tackle, quarterback, defensive end/edge rusher and wide receiver.
It should go without saying that free agency can and will alter a team's draft plans. With the exception of Washington, all of the teams drafting ahead of the Bears have more free cap space. So priorities will change once the draft arrives.
But now that the combine has concluded, one can start to stitch together scouting reports with athletic grades to determine who the top prospects are in this upcoming class. Doing a bit of projecting and an assessment of teams drafting ahead of the Bears, it's safe to assume a quarterback (Jameis Winston), a defensive lineman (Leonard Williams), at least one edge rusher (Dante Fowler and/or Randy Gregory) and at least one wide receiver (Kevin White and/or Amari Cooper) will be off the board by the time the Bears are on the clock.
Three teams have needs at quarterback before the Bears -- the Bucs, Titans and Jets -- so there's a chance Marcus Mariota may go as well. Three teams have pass rushing needs -- the Titans, Redskins and Jets -- so there's a chance a player like Shane Ray or Vic Beasley may hear his name called in addition to Fowler and/or Gregory.
As is the nature of the NFL, a general manager is typically expected to compete now while simultaneously building for the future. It's a difficult balance that few achieve.
Assuming the notion that the team thinks they can compete for a Super Bowl in 2015 -- which team president Ted Phillips said on Dec. 29 -- was purely rhetoric, Bears' brass (and fans) must give the new brain trust time to work through the building phase of this overhaul. It's early, but doing a quick look at the Bears' opponents next season, they are likely in for a tough season.
However, all signs indicate the Bears are in a prime position to start off the Pace/Fox partnership on the right foot.
Dan Durkin covers the Bears for CBSChicago.com and is a frequent contributor to 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter at @djdurkin.