FanPost

Is Pace gambling because this may be his last year, or because he'll be here awhile?

I think we can all agree that Pace gambled with the positions he drafted, and the specific players he took. All of the QBs in this draft were reaches in round 1, yet the Bears traded away valuable picks to get one. The Bears had dramatic needs at S (5th worst in the league vs deep passes) and CB (5th worst in the leagues against #1 WRs). This draft was stocked with talent at those positions, and the Bears elected to ignore CB and grab the 8th rated safety after the top prospects were gone.

As far as the players Pace selected, the Bears took a QB with a small sample size with which to evaluate, two D2 players (Pace likely learned to scout and draft D2 players from the Saints), and a safety with an extensive injury history. Player judgement aside, these picks were in the high risk/high reward camp.

The important question to me is whether Pace made his choices out of desperation, or because he finally feels comfortable enough in his job to take lots of chances. I don't pretend to know the answer to that question, but if due to mounting pressure Pace took players he wouldn't otherwise have taken, I am less confident in this year's picks. On the other hand, if Pace is finally letting his freak flag fly, and the fact the Saints have the most D2 players in the league suggests this is the case, I'm a bit happier with his selections.

What do you think? Did Pace make his selection to avoid being fired, or because he's a natural gambler?

This Fanpost was written by a Windy City Gridiron member and does not necessarily reflect the ideas or opinions of its staff or community.