With Deshaun Watson believed to be outside of a Bears top three consisting of LSU safety Jamal Adams, Texas A&M Myles Garrett and linebacker/end Solomon Thomas, indications are growing that a trade down will be necessary for the Bears to select the Clemson quarterback in Thursday’s first round of the 2017 draft.
GM Ryan Pace said on Wednesday that the Bears have a core of three elite players from which they would select if they remained at the No. 3-overall spot in round one. Pace also strongly reiterated his firm belief in staying a course to land the best possible player, something that sounded vaguely like a caution against reaching for Watson, who is not rated on the absolute-value scale at the levels of Adams, Garrett or Thomas.
The Bears view Adams as a talent and personality that changes a locker-room culture that Pace already believes is trending sharply up anyway. Some internal opinions favor Thomas (assuming that Garrett goes No. 1 to Cleveland), preferring the pass rusher. But the revised mock draft here is that between Adams or Thomas going to the Bears, Adams becomes the choice, based only on the Bears’ dire need for an impact safety; not a strong “choice,” however, because John Fox and every defense-based coach will always want a potential top pass rusher.
Pace gave a hint of Bears thinking when he outlined the three-tiered structure being formulated at Halas Hall: the three elites, the supposed pool set for the eventuality of the Bears staying at No. 3; the mid-round “cloud,” pointing to the Bears planning for offers to trade down; and a late-round “cloud” that contemplated a surprise talent lasting deep into round one and the Bears moving up from early round two to strike.
Watson is believed to lie in that mid-first-round cluster the Bears have identified. The Cleveland Browns have initiated calls to other teams in the top eight seeking a trade up from No. 12; if the Bears become the Browns’ trade partner and take that No. 12 pick in addition to an additional two or three picks, Watson and his “cloud” come into play.