The 2023 NFL draft will be here before we know it and it’s once again another golden opportunity for the Chicago Bears to improve their team with young talent. The Bears hold four selections in the top 64 picks, including the No. 9 overall pick, giving them a shot to select premier players across multiple positions.
As is the case every year, the NFL draft is an inexact science and not every pick is going to pan out. The Bears have certainly had their fair share of misses over the years.
We already looked at the best player from each draft, now it’s time to review the worst player from each Bears draft class since 2000.
2000: TE Dustin Lyman
- 3rd round, pick No. 87
The 2000 NFL draft was strong for the Bears early on as they hit big on linebacker Brian Urlacher and Mike Brown with their first two picks. Wide receiver Dez White, picked in the third round, was also a productive weapon for a few years. The same can’t be said for tight end Dustin Lyman. He wasn’t a bust, but he never developed into a full-time starter.
2001: WR David Terrell
- 1st round, pick No. 8
The Bears sought to find a star wide receiver when they selected David Terrell with a top-10 pick. But he eclipsed 500 receiving yards just once in his career and was out of the league after 2005. Meanwhile, players like Santana Moss, Reggie Wayne, and Chad Johnson all were selected later on and had phenomenal careers.
2002: OT Marc Colombo
- 1st round, pick No. 29
Tackle Marc Colombo could never stay healthy for the Bears during his tenure. He played in just 19 of a possible 49 games before he was waived. Colombo found success with the Dallas Cowboys later on as their entrenched right tackle, something that should have happened in Chicago. For the Bears, it was the first in a string of misses with first-round tackles over the next decade.
2003: DE Michael Haynes
- 1st round, pick No. 14
The Bears made two selections in the first round back in 2003, picking defensive end Michael Haynes and quarterback Rex Grossman. Neither one turned into a star, but while Grossman at least showed flashes and played a role in the team going to Super Bowl XLI, Haynes was a dud. After a poor rookie season, the team needed to bring in reinforcements by trading for Adewale Ogunleye. Haynes last just two more seasons with minimal production. What’s worse is Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu was taken just two picks later by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
2004: DE Claude Harriot
- 5th round, pick No. 147
It may not seem like it, but the 2004 draft class was solid. The Bears’ first four picks (defensive tackles Tommie Harris and Terry “Tank” Johnson, wide receiver Bernard Berrian, and cornerback Nathan Vasher) were all key contributors during the team’s back-to-back division title runs in 2005 and 2006. That leaves a player who never suited up, defensive end Claude Harriot. He was released at final cutdowns his rookie season and never played a down in the NFL, but did have success in NFL Europe.
2005: RB Cedric Benson
- 1st round, pick No. 4
Despite the Bears already having an established running back on their roster in Thomas Jones, they elected to select Cedric Benson with a top-five selection. They did so also knowing they weren’t on the same page when it came to a contract, which led to a holdout in training camp. Benson never took hold of an opportunity in Chicago and was released after three seasons. He landed with the Cincinnati Bengals, eclipsing 1,000 yards rushing three years in a row and finally realizing his potential.
2006: DT Dusty Dvoracek
- 3rd round, pick No. 73
The Bears had a strong defensive line in the mid-2000s and they attempted to make it stronger with defensive tackle Dusty Dvoracek in the third round of the 2006 NFL draft. Dvoracek struggled with injuries, though, missing essentially his entire first two seasons. He played just 13 games in three years for the Bears before he was released. Dvoracek, who played with Tommie Harris at Oklahoma, might have been a solid addition to the Bears but injuries got in the way.
2007: DE Dan Bazuin
- 2nd round, pick No. 62
Speaking of injuries, the Bears spent their 2007 second-round pick on a player who never saw the field at all. Defensive end Dan Bazuin dealt with knee injuries almost immediately and missed the entire 2007 season, never playing in a professional game. Between him and third-round selection linebacker Michael Okwo, who also never played a down, it was a historically bad couple of defensive picks for the Bears.
2008: OT Chris Williams
- 1st round, pick No. 14
The 2008 NFL draft had plenty of premier offensive tackles to pick from. Jake Long, Branden Albert, Ryan Clady, Gosder Cherilus, Sam Baker, and Duane Brown were all among the top players available. It was a good year for the Bears to take a swing at a tackle, but they missed badly with Chris Williams. The former Vanderbilt star struggled with back injuries and couldn’t play the position, needing to move inside. With Albert, Brown, Cherilus, and Baker all having productive careers and still available after the Bears picked, mistakes were clearly made.
2009: DT Jarron Gilbert
- 3rd round, pick No. 68
Thanks to the trade to acquire Jay Cutler, the Bears were without a first-round pick and they decided to trade down from the second round as well. That meant their first selection of the draft came in the third round and they used it on a guy who could jump out of a pool. Defensive tackle Jarron Gilbert’s athleticism only went so far in the NFL. He appeared in just four games, notching one tackle for the Bears before bouncing around the league.
2010: QB Dan LeFevour
- 6th round, pick No. 181
For the second season in a row, the Bears didn’t make a first or second-round selection and only had five picks in the entire draft. They took a shot on quarterback Dan LeFevour in the sixth round, but he struggled in his first preseason and couldn’t beat out Todd Collins or Caleb Hanie as a backup quarterback. He didn’t make the roster and never played in the NFL.
2011: OT Gabe Carimi
- 1st round, pick No. 29
The 2011 NFL draft is known for having a historically strong first round. Half of the selections made a Pro Bowl and multiple players will be going to the Hall of Fame someday. It’s safe to say Gabe Carimi won’t be one of them. The Bears thought they landed a gem when the offensive tackle fell into their lap at No. 29 overall, but that wasn’t the case. Carimi dealt with injuries his first season and was benched his second season before moving inside to guard. He was traded just two years later to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
2012: DE Shea McClellin
- 1st round, pick No. 19
New Bears general manager Phil Emery got off to a rocky start when he selected defensive end Shea McClellin with the team’s first-round pick. At the time, McClellin was viewed as a risk due to his size and someone who didn’t fit a 4-3 defense. Couple that with the fact that defensive ends Chandler Jones and Whitney Mercilus, both of whom enjoyed very successful careers, were still on the board and this goes down as an all-time blunder. McClellin never had a true home on defense and his best quality was his inane ability to somehow always sack Aaron Rodgers.
2013: LB Jonathan Bostic
- 2nd round, pick No. 50
Though linebacker Jonathan Bostic is still in the league today, he wasn’t very successful with the Bears. Drafted in the second round just two picks in front of linebacker Jamie Collins, Bostic was known for one big hit that he had on Philip Rivers in the preseason. Other than that, he was a linebacker with empty stats on two of the worst defenses the franchise had ever seen. Bostic was never a consistent starter, though he did have a few impressive tackle totals in games. He was traded just a few games into his third season after failing to secure a starting job under head coach John Fox.
2014: DT Ego Ferguson
- 2nd round, pick No. 51
The Bears tried fortifying their defensive line by selecting Ego Ferguson and Will Sutton on Day 2 of the 2014 NFL draft. It didn’t work. Ferguson, the worse of the two picks, played one full season before becoming expendable in the team’s new defense in 2015. He played just four games his second season and never saw the field again in part due to injuries and a suspension.
2015: WR Kevin White
- 1st round, pick No. 7
Wide receiver Kevin White had all the tools to become a prolific pass catcher in the NFL thanks to his unique size and speed. Injuries thwarted any chance of that happening, however. White played in just five games his first three years and by the time he was healthy, he was passed up on the depth chart.
2016: DE Jonathan Bullard
- 3rd round, pick No. 72
When the Bears grabbed defensive end Jonathan Bullard in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft, it felt like a huge steal. Bullard was seen as a potential first-round selection at one point, but his production showed why he fell. He was fairly ineffective for the Bears in three seasons, starting just five games and notching two sacks. He’s a journeyman lineman at this point in his career.
2017: TE Adam Shaheen
- 2nd round, pick No. 45
Surprised it’s not Mitchell Trubisky? Though it still hurts that the Bears missed on the quarterback position, Trubisky was at least serviceable. The same can’t be said for tight end Adam Shaheen, who was a major reach in the second round. Shaheen topped 150 receiving yards once in his career. He had raw potential, but that only goes so far. To add insult to injury, Shaheen was picked before more productive tight ends such as Jonnu Smith, George Kittle, Blake Jarwin, and Mo Alie-Cox.
2018: WR Anthony Miller
- 2nd round, pick No. 51
The Bears not only selected wide receiver Anthony Miller in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft, but they traded away future capital to get him. Miller looked like a promising young player, scoring six touchdowns his rookie season, but mental gaffes and poor route running began to limit his snaps. By his third season, he was passed up on the depth chart and his last moment as a Bear was getting ejected for punching an opposing player. He was traded the following offseason.
2019: WR Riley Ridley
- 4th round, pick No. 126
Thanks to the trade for Khalil Mack and the Miller deal a year prior, the Bears didn’t have any first or second-round picks. They needed to hit on their mid-round selections but failed to do so when they selected wide receiver Riley Ridley in the fourth round. Ridley, the young brother of Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Calvin Ridley, had limited athleticism and couldn’t crack the receiver rotation. He lasted just two seasons and has yet to play since 2020.
2020: CB Kindle Vildor
- 5th round, pick No. 163
We’re now getting into the classes that still can make an impact for the Bears. This is admittedly unfair to cornerback Kindle Vildor. For one, he was a fifth-round selection and after a dismal second season, he rebounded in 2022. But that goes to show how strong this class looks. The top five players are all playing quality snaps. And it’s hard to say a seventh-round selection like Arlington Hambright or Lachavious Simmons can be considered the worst pick. For all intents and purposes, Vildor is the weakest pick of the top five but after last year’s showing, it’s not necessarily a bad pick.
2021: OL Teven Jenkins
- 2nd round, pick No. 39
Like 2020, the 2021 draft class is difficult to pick on because it’s still so fresh and players are still developing. Offensive lineman Teven Jenkins should not be labeled as a bad pick. But considering general manager Ryan Pace used future draft capital to move up and select him, coupled with the fact he’s not playing tackle as intended while also dealing with injury issues, there are holes that can be found. Jenkins does look like a solid guard in the NFL and his story hasn’t been written yet. At this time, though, the pick doesn’t look as good as it once did.
2022: WR Velus Jones
- 3rd round, pick No. 71
Velus Jones Jr. was the only wide receiver selected by the Bears in the 2022 NFL draft, a position that was a glaring hole. Jones wasn’t a regular contributor to the wide receiver room his rookie year and struggled on special teams. It wasn’t until the final couple of games that things seemed to look better. Jones still has time to find a role on the Bears but given their moves to bolster their wide receiver corps, he has an uphill climb.
