And another post from the "and now for something different" file. Pro Football Weekly has posted a mock draft that has the Bears taking a player I have yet to see attached to the Bears at least from a mock draft stand point.
The target is Penn State defensive end Aaron Maybin. Maybin is a 6' 4", 246 lb sophomore.
GM Jerry Angelo will be craving another taste of the Penn State apple after Michael Haynes turned out to be too much of a nice guy five years prior. Maybin has elite first-step quickness and could bring the edge burst that the Bears’ defense sorely lacked last season. With DL specialist Rod Marinelli now in tow, the Bears have the right man in place to develop pass-rushing talent.
From FFToolbox:
Maybin has outstanding speed for an end, and is much stronger than his size would suggest. He does his best work coming off the edge and simply running by offensive tackles. Maybin isn't only a speed rusher though. He has excellent technique, and does a good job of using his hands to keep blockers from cutting his feet out from under him. Maybin took full advantage of his starting role this season, having tallied 49 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, and even breaking up 3 passes in coverage.
Reading up on this guy, it seems hard to imagine that he is ranked behind Tyson Jackson on a lot of sites. In his senior season Maybin racked up 12 sacks and since sacks should actually be the goal of a defensive end, it sits better with me than Jackson.
The knock on Maybin is he may need a year or two to get ready. I'm ok with that as an option. The Bears do have Ogunleye under his current contract for another season and they have Alex Brown. Maybin could be a fill in or third down player. If Rod Marinelli can work the magic everybody thinks he has on Mark Anderson, we have time to let Maybin develop and possbily the right guy to develop him.