I was going to title this "Why the Chicago Bears Shouldn’t Draft a QB in the First Round." Then I started looking at the first round results from the past 10 years and a strong pattern began to emerge; the NFL draft is a crapshoot. Socking revelation I know but it got me to thinking. Many on WCG are clamoring for a defensive player to be taken at #3. I can’t argue against that. Several more are clamoring for a QB at #3. I was going to argue against that. I mean, we all know that QB’s taken in the first round come with a high risk. Most don’t even pan out as starters. So logic would dictate that taking a player at another position would inherently mean less risk. Right? Sorta. Maybe.

You can look at the results from the past many NFL drafts. That can be found here. I started looking at 2013 and worked my way back. I figured by the 4th year in the league most players have established themselves. The results, for the most part, back that assumption up. Most players taken in the first round are starters for their teams. But players taken in the first round come with expectations that might call for more than a mere "starter". Face it. Draft a first rounder, particularly a high first rounder, and you want a stud. Yet the results don’t always bear that out. Many players become simply acceptable for their position. Many more change positions and experience moderate success. Like the highly drafted OT who became a decent OG or that stud college wide receiver who became a good returner that could contribute as the third receiver. Then you have the busts. Guys who just never made it. Maybe it was injury, maybe they were over rated in college or maybe they fell into trouble. For whatever reason they were busts.

The first round is full of them. At every position. Don’t believe me? Just look. Sure you have your share of starters. You even have that hand full of beasts. But you also have the "meh", the "might have beens" and the "what the hells". But here’s the difference between all those other position players and the ones that are drafted to play QB; A guy who is projected as a "stud" at any other position won’t be considered a bad pick if they eventually contribute on the team. But if a quarterback gets drafted high? He’s better be at the top of his craft of he’ll finish his career as a backup at best. You know what you call a career back up QB drafted in the first round? A bust. You know what you call a career third wide receiver taken high or safety drafted as a cornerback in the first round? Slightly disappointing or a pleasant surprise depending on the result. (Think Kyle Fuller or Kevin White and cross your fingers) If a player drafted in the first winds ups as a solid, if less than spectacular player, people will say it was a decent pick. But if a QB falls under that same description?

My point? The Bears shouldn’t even bother to draft. Too much risk. No, seriously though. The Bears should take whatever player they think will improve this team the most. Regardless of position. In the meanwhile I’ll listen to those who want to avoid drafting a QB in the first round because of the risk. They’re correct. Drafting a quarterback in the first is a risky move. So is drafting an offensive tackle (Gabe Carimi??) or a wide receiver (David Terrell? #$@%^!!) , or a defensive end (Dion Jordan?). The difference? The floor is higher at every other position. Is that enough to pass on the risk? I guess I’ll leave that up to Ryan Pace and hope. But mostly Ryan Pace.

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