Now that the Bears have addressed their biggest need by signing wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad, their draft strategy is up for review.
“This gives us a lot of latitude,” general manager Jerry Angelo said. “I’m not ruling out anything now. We always say we want the best player, and we lean toward a need, but this opens it up.”
The addition of Muhammad lessens the need to draft a receiver but, given the Bears’ struggles in the passing game, doesn’t eliminate it.
The Bears were unlikely to come out of the first round with a receiver even before signing Muhammad because Michigan’s Braylon Edwards easily could go before the Bears make the fourth pick on April 23. New San Francisco coach Mike Nolan, whose 49ers pick first, has mentioned the possibility of selecting Edwards.
Running back remains the most likely position for the Bears’ first-round pick, but Muhammad’s presence changes their second-round outlook.
They’re still likely to take an offensive player there, but now the need is not desperate.
That’s one reason defensive coordinator Ron Rivera was glad to see his bosses sign Muhammad and eliminate the assumption that the first two picks would be spent on offense.
The defense’s biggest need is an outside linebacker to play next to Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs. Joe Odom and Hunter Hillenmeyer have failed to nail down the job despite opportunities the last two seasons.
Even with the Muhammad signing, Rivera is unlikely to get help in the first round because the draft is top-heavy with offense.
The fourth pick appears too valuable to take any of the top defenders, such as West Virginia cornerback Adam Jones, Miami cornerback Antrel Rolle or Wisconsin defensive end Erasmus James. Texas outside linebacker Derrick Johnson is expected to be a top-10 pick.
With a high second-round pick, the Bears could be looking at outside linebackers like Darryl Blackstock of Virginia and Kevin Burnett of Tennessee. Their third-round pick was traded to Miami last year in the Adewale Ogunleye deal.
If the Bears take a running back with their first pick, a second-round receiver to play opposite Muhammad remains a possibility.
“This gives us more flexibility, and we’re not ruling out receiver,” Angelo said. “There’s nothing wrong with [adding] two, and we like [Bernard] Berrian and [Justin] Gage (both current Bears).”
The signing of Muhammad alone has put David Terrell’s Bears future in question. Adding a receiver as high as the second round could end his Chicago stay.
Receiver is one of the strengths of this draft, and history shows the good ones don’t all come from the top of the first round. Jerry Rice was a mid-first-round pick. New England’s Deion Branch, Super Bowl MVP, was a second-rounder.
After Edwards, the second receiver taken may be USC’s 6-foot-5-inch, 228-pound Mike Williams. He ran a 4.59-second 40-yard dash at the scouting combine, not fast enough to challenge Edwards to be the first receiver taken but good enough for teams to think about him in the top 10.
Oklahoma’s Mark Clayton looks like a first-round lock. Georgia’s Reggie Brown could go quickly too. In the second round, the Bears could be looking at receiving prospects like Alabama-Birmingham’s Roddy White and South Carolina’s Troy Williamson.
“The second tier of wide receivers is going to be very good, and the same can be said for running back,” Angelo said.
But it’s that first tier of running backs that probably will tempt the Bears with the fourth pick. If Edwards and quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Alex Smith go in the top three picks, the Bears would have their choice of running backs.
Auburn’s Ronnie Brown, 6 feet and 231 pounds, has 4.45-speed in the 40-yard dash and could give the Bears a good complement to Thomas Jones. Auburn teammate Carnell Williams and Cedric Benson of Texas are also likely top-10 picks.
