Lance Briggs-LB-Arizona-Round 3 2003: What makes the Briggs pick even more fortuitous is that Briggs was drafted for (former defensive coordinator) Greg Blache’s system one year before Lovie Smith’s arrival. Smith’s base cover two defense relied heavily on a dynamic tackler to man the weak side “will” linebacker, and although Briggs became a solid starter [...]
Devin Hester-KR-Miami-Round 2 2006: Hester probably slipped in the 2006 draft because he never found a position at Miami. He played some at cornerback, some at receiver, but excelled at neither position. But he was a dynamic kick returner, bringing back six kicks in college for touchdowns. Since the Bears were already a playoff team [...]
Charles “Peanut” Tillman-CB-Louisana Lafayette-Round 2 2003: Several corners were rated higher in the 2003 draft than Tillman. Five corners were selected before him: Terence Newman, Marcus Trufant, Andre Woolfolk, Sammy Davis and Nnamdi Asomugha. Who else would anyone take over Tillman in their tenth pro year other than Asomugha? Probably nobody. Tillman became a starter [...]
Matt Forte-RB-Tulane-Round 2 2008: As of 2008, the Bears had busted out in drafting running backs going all the way back to the late 1980′s. The selection of Neal Anderson (first round 1986) was a home run even though his career fizzled after his sixth season. Brad Muster (first round, 1988) was a nice compliment [...]
