On Friday, the Bears gave up their 2010 2nd round draft pick for Tampa Bay defensive end Gaines Adams.  Adams was the Bucs' 2007 1st round pick (fourth overall).  While the trade is very intriguing at the very least, it is a bit of a risk - considering the Bears already didn't have a 1st round pick next year.  Now they will have to sit out the first 2 rounds of the 2010 draft. 

As soon as the trade broke, I tried to find out as much as I could about Adams - as he hasn't exactly been on the front page very often over the past couple of years.  What I found out was encouraging, namely that Adams is extremely athletic.  He ran a 4.64 40, with a 35 inch vertical at the combine.  The knock on Adams is that he may be a little undersized, even at 6' 5", 260 lbs.  Scouts generally seem to think that he could add about 10 pounds in the weight room.  He is considered a "speed rusher", who doesn't provide much else in terms of power or technique.  He did a modest 21 reps of 225, on the bench-press at the combine in 2007.  He doesn't appear to have gained much size or strength since then.  Numbers-wise, he averaged 6 sacks over his first 2-years in the NFL.  While these numbers are very average for a defensive end, he did lead his team in '07 and '08.

via www.chicagobears.com

Although Adams was one of the most sought-after players in the '07 draft (picked 3 spots ahead of Adrian Peterson), his coach on the Bucs (Raheem Morris) felt that he was an under-achiever.  Morris had basically given Adams an ultimatum in camp this year, telling him that if he didn't register double digit sacks, he would be considered a "bust."  Adams responded by getting only 1 sack in his first five games this year.  However, it doesn't appear that the Bucs were shopping him, so much as Jerry Angelo coveting the third-year player from Clemson.  I'm sure Lovie Smith and Rod Marinelli were fully aware of the situation, and they probably had signifigant input in the trade as well.  In any event, after Cedric Benson's "re-birth" on the Bengals, maybe we're due to have someone come to Chicago and turn their career around.  Here's hoping that Marinelli can work his magic with this kid and help develop him into a stud pass-rusher!