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On occasion, I run out of people to talk about in these draft segments, so when comment streams happen like yesterday's comments on Jesse Williams, that turns into my impetus to do a post on that player.
Why would the Bears be interested in a defensive tackle high? Because they don't have much cheap depth. Henry Melton currently eats the franchise tag's approximately 8.5 million and Stephen Paea shoved out Matt Toeaina - currently, their only backup is Nate Collins. Paea's deal expires in 2014 and unless Melton agrees to a long-term deal (he probably still will), he may not be around after 2013.
Williams' primary skillset lies in his ability to take up space and absorb blocks. His pass-rushing is a pretty harsh liability at this point, but if it comes along, he's got the strength to make it work - his bull rush is a nice first move, but he doesn't have much in agility for a counter or second move. But against the run, he's hard to move off his mark and can close lanes effectively. Like Paea, he picked up football relatively late (at the age of 15) and still has plenty of room to learn the game more.
CBS marks him as the 37th overall prospect and 6th defensive tackle, making him a late-first or early-second round pick. In fact, three CBS mocks have him in the first round - two at the 31st pick to the 49ers and one 28th to the Broncos. WalterFootball puts him as a second-to-third rounder as the 9th defensive tackle, and has him lasting to the 49ers at 61 in the second round.
I don't think he's necessarily on the radar for the Bears, but stranger things have happened and there could always be worse picks. What do you think?