NFL.com Analyst, Elliot Harrison, recently picked his All-Under-25 team featuring the very best of the best players that will be under twenty-five years old at the start of the 2018 season.
The Chicago Bears have a few players that could have been in the running, but ultimately Harrison only picked one.
Returner: Tarik Cohen, Chicago Bears
Cohen contributed in every which way for the Bears in 2017, bringing an explosive element to Chicago’s run game, pass game and return game. He finished in the top 10 in punt-return and kick-return average.
Cohen was compared to Darren Sproles coming out of college, and those comparisons have continued after he racked up 1,578 all-purpose yards as a rookie. But that’s just not us saying it, it’s national. “Cohen exhibits Darren Sproles-like playmaking ability, but he is more polished and refined as a pass catcher,” says Bucky Brooks of NFL.com.
Sproles himself weighed in on how the Bears should be using Cohen.
“They have to put him in space a little bit more though. Like, they’ve really got to move him around, create mismatches for him.”
“With the new coach (Matt Nagy) though, I think they might use him a little bit different, move him around,” Sproles said. “They should watch New Orleans film. Watch some of that film. They’ve got to put him in spots like they did with Alvin Kamara.”
And then there’s this from a Packers’ reporter.
Matt Nagy drawing up plays for Tarik Cohen. Week 1 is going to be interesting.
— Aaron Nagler (@AaronNagler) June 19, 2018
With the de-emphasis of the kicking game in today’s NFL, Cohen may never approach Sproles’ kick return numbers, but he’ll still have plenty of chances to touch the rock in Nagy’s offense.
The Bears have a few other under-25 veteran players that will make an impact in 2018 including Jordan Howard, Mitchell Trubisky, Eddie Goldman, and Allen Robinson.