The Chicago Bears are gearing up for the 2023 NFL draft, where general manager Ryan Poles has an important decision to make at ninth overall.
There’s a belief that Poles could look to trade down for a second time in the first round. If there’s a late-run on quarterbacks in the first round or top prospects sitting at No. 9, a team might be willing to move up with Chicago.
But if the Bears aren’t able to orchestrate a trade back, there should be some top options on the board with the ninth overall pick. In fact, Chicago could have their choice of offensive tackle, where protecting quarterback Justin Fields is of utmost importance.
In a new mock draft from Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar, the Bears select Ohio State offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. with the No. 9 selection, reuniting Fields with his former college teammate.
The Bears wisely traded down from the first overall pick with the knowledge that they don’t need a quarterback, but that they do need just about everything else. They especially need pass protection, and as Braxton Jones is their projected starting left tackle at this point, it might be time to address that early in the draft. Johnson isn’t a perfect prospect, but he’s the best pass-blocking tackle in this class with physical attributes that transition easily to the net level. When people debit C.J. Stroud as a prospect because he was throwing from clean pockets so much of the time… well, here’s the primary reason why.
Johnson, who’s 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds, could very well be the first tackle off the board. In his first season at left tackle with the Buckeyes, he allowed 14 pressures on 449 pass-blocking snaps, per Pro Football Focus.
If Chicago drafts Johnson that could mean a position switch for Braxton Jones, last year’s fifth-round selection who started all 17 games at left tackle in 2022.
