Chicago Bears 2020 Draft Class Grades

We asked you guys to grade each pick the Chicago Bears made in the 2020 NFL Draft, and even through the polls are still open, we’re going to share what you guys gave Chicago’s draft haul here. We’re also going to share the composite score (From EJ’s 30 point system) that our draft analyst’s EJ Snyder and Jacob Infante gave each pick.

Here’s the full 2020 Chicago Bears draft class and their individual grades.

• 2nd Round, Pick 11, 43rd overall: Cole Kmet, TE, Notre Dame

Your Grade for Cole: B

“Us drafting him at 43 neither proves he could have been had later NOR does it prove he couldn’t have been had later. Its just what happened.” ~ RoamingBear

EJ’s grade for Cole: 11/30

“The board was aligned almost perfectly for the Bears in terms of team needs... I just can’t get over the fact they let good value slide AND didn’t trade back. Either would have been preferable options.”

Link to Kmet’s grade article

• 2nd Round, Pick 18, 50th overall: Jaylon Johnson, CB, Utah

Your Grade for Jaylon: A

“Only concern is the shoulder injury. But man, it looks like we got a lockdown style corner. May not have a bunch of INTs but teams had a hard time throwing his way and he hardly gave up many long plays. I hope this carries over.” ~ mustang6944

EJ’s grade for Jaylon: 23/30

“Johnson has all the physical traits and play style to smoothly transition to start in Chicago as a replacement for Prince Amukamara.”

Link to Johnson’s grade article

• 5th Round, Pick 155 overall: Trevis Gipson, EDGE, Tulsa

Your Grade for Trevis: B

“This is what 5th round picks should be, athletic, high upside guys and see if something comes of it.” ~ tfrabotta

EJ’s Grade for Trevis: 18/30

“Trading a future 4th round pick feels a little steep - but the player’s skill-set and potential to develop at a position of need offsets that bit.”

Link to Gipson’s grade article

• 5th Round, Pick 163 overall: Kindle Vildor, CB, Georgia Southern

Your Grade for Kindle: B

“Injuries among DBs are a great way to wreck your D. More depth for dime packagers is a good thing” ~ crackedcactus

EJ’s Grade for Kindle: 16/30

“Vildor is a physical, aggressive press corner. He’s undersized but extremely competitive.”

Link to Vildor’s grade article

• 5th Round, 173 overall: Darnell Mooney, WR, Tulane

Your Grade for Darnell: B

“Trading 200 to the eagles to pick Mooney at 173 with the Eagles then picking (Quez) Watkins at 200 makes no sense! Watkins is faster and stronger.” ~ BearDownIsrael

EJ’s Grade for Darnell: 22/30

“He’s not the biggest or strongest, so he’ll have to learn to get off press coverage, but his ability to get deep will truly open up the underneath of Nagy’s passing scheme.”

Link to Mooney’s grade article

• 7th Round, 226 overall: Arlington Hambright, OL, Colorado

Your Grade for Arlington: B

“He’s got size, athleticism, and positional versatility. That’s exactly the type of guy you’re supposed to draft in the 7th round. I give it an A.” ~ BryanM

Jacob’s Grade for Arlington: 22/30

“His athleticism makes him a good fit for a zone-blocking scheme like Chicago’s, and his physical tools could make him an intriguing long-term project for their offensive line.”

Link to Hambright’s grade article

• 7th Round, 227 overall: Lachavious “Pig” Simmons, OL, Tennessee State

Your Grade for Lachavious: C

“Yea, we all love to put a grade on a pick. Unless your an alumni or a college football nerd do any of us really watch enough college football to have an intelligent opinion? Never heard of most of the picks from round two on. So I’ll grade my opinion as an incomplete.” ~ dabearski

Who’s he calling a nerd?

Jacob’s Grade for Lachavious: 21/30

“His athleticism is just okay, and his pad level prevents him from garnering maximum power in his lower body, but he brings a real brute to the Bears’ offensive line.”

Link to Simmons’ grade article

Our Twitter followers have voted a solid B for the draft class as a whole.

Let’s take a look around the inter-webs to see what other publications gave the Bears for a grade.

SB Nation’s Dan Kadar gave the Bears a C+.

If a team can be made of all tight ends, the Bears are positioned to do it. Since the Bears didn’t have a first-round pick due to the Khalil Mack trade, Chicago’s first pick was on Notre Dame tight end Cole Kmet in the second round. It’s hard to completely fault the pick considering Kmet was the best tight end in the draft. But now the Bears literally have 10 tight ends.

The Bears followed that up in the second round by taking Utah cornerback Jaylon Johnson, who some thought might have been picked in the first round. Chicago doesn’t have much at cornerback after Kyle Fuller, so getting Johnson was the team’s best selection. The Bears doubled up on the position in the fourth round with Georgia Southern’s Kindle Vildor.

Fifth-round pick Trevis Gibson has value as a long linebacker who can play the run and do enough as a pass rusher. The problem with this draft is the lack of offensive linemen until the seventh round.

The tight end joke gets funnier and funnier the more I hear it. What the Bears have on their roster is a handful of tight ends that can either play the U or the Y, two distinct positions in Chicago’s scheme, with a few of those players being boom or bust prospects, plus one player that has already busted and will soon be released.

Let’s take a look at what NFL.com gave the Bears right here:

Day 1 grade: Incomplete

Day 2 grade: B+

Day 3 grade: A-

Overall grade: B+

Draft analysis: The Bears’ first-round pick this year was held by the Raiders as part of the deal for sackmaster Khalil Mack. They found a talented tight end in Kmet (whom I like more than most), though the pick gives them an absurd amount of depth at the position. Johnson was a good pick later in the second round, as well. Gipson is an underrated player who offered solid value in the fifth round. Vildor has many fans across the league. Hambright is an intriguing prospect with great upside for a seventh-round pick.

I think I’m most excited to see the athletic Arlington Hambright line up at guard for the Bears.

Pro Football Focus gave the Bears a B+

Day 1: The Bears were without a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft after trading it away in the package they sent the Raiders for Khalil Mack in 2018. Over the past two seasons, Mack ranks third in PFF grade among qualifying edge defenders.

Day 2: PFF was a bit lower on Kmet than the consensus. He came in at 98th on PFF’s big board while ranking 62nd on The Athletic’s 2020 Consensus Board. He has a nice all-around game and is still very young, but he’s not quite the dynamic, sudden athlete that you draft highly at the position. He’s a reliable chain mover which is nice in any offense, but not necessarily worthy of a high draft pick.

“Johnson is one of the most instinctual corners in the entire draft, and he goes to a landing spot in Chicago where that ability can thrive. We saw Johnson’s grades improve every single year of his college career after he saw 506 snaps as a true freshman back in 2017. In his final seven games with Utah, Johnson allowed only 112 yards combined.” — PFF’s Mike Renner

Day 3: The Bears added a couple of players in the fifth round that have potential to be difference-makers in the NFL. Gipson isn’t going to be ready to contribute as a rookie, but all the tools are there to be a successful pass rusher in the NFL. Despite not being in a favorable scheme for him at Tulsa, he put up a pass-rushing grade of 89.7 in 2019. Darnell Mooney brings some speed to the slot for Chicago, having averaged over 15 yards per reception in each of the past three seasons for Tulane.

Jaylon Johnson did have shoulder issues the last two years, but he played through them and only had surgery last month. He’ll be ready to go by the end of the summer.

The USA Today gave the Bears a B.

Considering how things have played out, good argument to be made that the trade for Khalil Mack – even at the cost of two first-rounders – has been worth it. GM Ryan Pace also did a nice job Friday by landing TE Cole Kmet and CB Jaylon Johnson, borderline first-round prospects, in Round 2.

I’m noticing two things on these grades...

Everyone is still factoring in the Mack trade in their grades and Cole Kmet seemed to be valued more nationally than locally.

The Washington Post gave the Bears a C+.

The Bears were without a first-round choice because of the Khalil Mack trade. They got good value at positions of need with their second-round selections of TE Cole Kmet and CB Jaylon Johnson. But they just didn’t have enough premium picks for this to be a truly impactful draft class.

If they get at least three early contributors out of this class, and that’s what it looks like on paper, then that’s not a bad haul considering no first, third, or fourth round picks.

The New York Post not only graded each draft haul, but they ranked each class too.

28) Chicago Bears

Grade: C-

Key Picks: Cole Kmet (TE, Notre Dame), Jaylon Johnson (CB, Utah), Kindle Vildor (CB, Georgia Southern)

Analysis: Just two top-150 picks made eight picks apart in the second round. The Bears now have 10 tight ends on the roster. Ten! There were better cornerbacks than Johnson available, too.

I’m not even going to bother with a rebuttal on this one.