| 20 February 2010
What is the Bears' primary draft need and what type of prospect should they target in the third round?
Safety, O-Line, CB, D-Line, those are some of the needs the 2010 Chicago Bears are looking at scouting in the 2010 NFL Draft. There's legitimate needs at all four of those position groups, and the question is what should the focus be for the Bears when their number comes up in the third round of the draft? A case could be made that the weakest link on this team in 2009 wasn't the offensive line, but it was in fact the defensive line, the pass rush and getting off the field on third down. The Bears were one of the worst teams in the NFL in defensive third down stops, 27th overall in the league. With those stats in mind coupled with the likely loss of DE Adewale Ogunleye via free agency, the recent death of DE Gaines Adams the Bears may very well want to think about taking a DE in the third round.
Perhaps one of the most intriguing prospects the Chicago Bears could be scouting at the NFL draft combine is Ole Miss DE Greg Hardy. Projected anywhere from the second round to the third round due to his injury problems. More than that though what makes Hardy so intriguing is that last year at this time he was considered to be one of the top overall prospects heading into the 2009 season.
At 6-foot-5 275-pounds Hardy is a prototypical 4-3 end whose stock has fallen off a bit due to his injury problems and sometimes a lack of effort on every snap. His overall talent however is undeniable as he has at times been dominant at the collegiate level. Most fans scoff at the idea of going after a prospect who doesn't give total effort on every single down with the Bears' first selection in the draft. Most fans would want to shy away from a guy who has injury concerns, but then those fans also forget the true value of a third round selection.
Getting caught up in the enormous hype of the NFL draft all too often leads to over thinking on what the Bears should do when their selection comes up in the third round. Compounding the thinking is how do Bears fans go about scouting prospects in the third round when most fans lose interest after the first round selection. Hardy is the type of player that should ease the thinking of Bears fans if he's available in the third round.
The main question is if he lights it up at the combine and further lights it up at his pro-day will he easily project himself into the the second round of the draft? Last year there was a bit of the same level of concern with Georgia Tech's Michael Johnson who was off the charts with his size and athleticism, but fell into the third round to the Bengals at sixth overall in that round.
This could be the area where Hardy falls if his injury concerns cause him to spiral downward. Spiraling downward may be precisely what Bears fans want however. Again I can't emphasize just what type of player Hardy is, big, strong, fast and when he turns it on he dominates. Dominates in one of the best conferences against some of the best competition in the country in the SEC.
Hardy's career numbers are pretty solid 26 career sacks, six forced fumbles and he was a two time All-SEC performer. His only concerns were a pre-season surgery on his foot prior to the 2009 season, and a wrist surgery at the end of the 2009 season that caused him to miss the final three regular season games.
Pre-season wise though Hardy ranked as the top prospect at the defensive end by numerous scouting services, almost no one had him rated below the third overall DE in the nation prior to the start of 2009. So the talent is legitimately there for this top notch D-End prospect.
The interesting thing to watch at the scouting combine will be just how quick is his first step, how fast does he run the curl, how solid is his balance and how quickly can he change direction. Hardy is so intriguing because of his profile, do you want him to explode at the combine or do you want him to show up do well but still hover in the third round area where the Bears might be able to pick him off and then have him molded by Rod Marinelli?
Hardy was an invite to the East West Shrine game and didn't live up to expectations in the week of practice leading up to the game, which is part of the reason why his stock has fallen off a bit. The more he may struggle the better it looks for the Bears, the key will be getting value at that third round slot for the Bears.
A player like Greg Hardy offers clear value in the third round, arguably the best overall value that might be found in the third round if his stock falls that far. So far his stock has fallen, and the next question is how far do you want this stock to fall?
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