The Bears’ Future Hall of Famers

I love the NFL Draft.  I love the absolute ridiculous optimism that comes attached to every draft pick, simply because we haven’t had the opportunity to watch them suck yet as professional football players.

As fans, we have the amazing ability to read scouting reports of these players, drool over their alleged strengths and ignore the cognitive dissonance that comes from reading their weaknesses.  In fact, I’ve found that it’s best to just ignore the weaknesses altogether.

I’ve taken the Bears first five draft picks below and listed some of the relevant information from scouts.  Following that, I will draw my own conclusions from the scouting reports, offer a player comparison and a draft grade.

Again, I love the NFL Draft.

Jarron Gilbert  (DT,  San Jose State)
Scouting report: Very athletic.  Extremely quick.  Terrific natural strength and power. Big, strong hands. Nice balance and agility.  Is able to penetrate and make plays in the backfield.  Tons of upside.
Player comparison: Based on his athleticism, quickness and ability to jump out of a swimming pool, I’d say the closest comparison for Gilbert is a more athletic Reggie White.
Grade: A++++++++++

Juaquin Iglesias (WR, Oklahoma)
Scouting report: Good size and bulk. Decent athleticism and very smooth.  Soft, reliable hands. Good ball skills and body control.  Excellent route runner. Elusive with great vision. Can do some damage after the catch. Very tough.
Player comparison: Based on the reports of his intelligence, polish and route-running, Iglesias’ best comparison is a combination of Derrick Mason and Reggie Wayne.
Grade: A++++

Henry Melton (DE, Texas)
Scouting report: Extremely athletic.  Good speed and quickness.  Explosive with a burst.  Great balance and agility.  Does a terrific job in pursuit and closes fast.  Good  strength. Has a lot of upside.
Player comparison: While not as elite of a line prospect as Gilbert, Melton should probably have a career pretty similar to Jared Allen, minus the off-field troubles.
Grade: A+++

D.J. Moore (CB, Vanderbilt)
Scouting report: Highly athletic. Very quick and agile. Terrific hands and ball skills. Good leaper. Nice instincts and awareness. Tough and plays physical. Lots of experience versus top competition
Player comparison: I still can’t believe the Bears were able to pick the next Charles Woodson this late in the draft.
Grade: A+

Johnny Knox (WR, Abilene Christian)
Scouting report: Smooth athlete. Outstanding timed speed. Quick with great acceleration and a burst. Reliable hands. Elusive. Nice vision and instincts. Vertical threat who can really separate.
Player comparison: With his top-flight speed, Knox is probably best described as a hybrid of Tim Brown and Joey Galloway.
Grade: A+++

Marcus Freeman (OLB, Ohio State)
Scouting report: Excellent athleticism. Great speed. Quick and agile.  Has sideline-to-sideline range. Reads and reacts well. Reliable tackler. Smart with good instincts.  Able to match up in coverage. Offers positional versatility.
Player comparison: Lance Briggs, with the instincts of Zach Thomas, the heart of a lion and the courage of a Navy SEAL.
Grade: Three thumbs up.

Al Afalava (S, Oregon State)
Scouting report: Enforcer in the middle of the field. Reputation across the Pac-10 as the hardest hitting safety in the league. Sound tackler in the open field and quick to sniff out the draw and attack the line of scrimmage on running plays. Zone coverage and understanding is above average.
Player comparison: Post-2006 Adam Archuleta.  I guess not every pick can be great.
Grade: D.