Jalen Hurts, Cole Kmet names to watch as Bears enter combine week

The Chicago Bears arrive at the NFL combine with multiple roster holes to fill and modest resources available to do so.

General manager Ryan Pace will no doubt attempt to address certain problem areas in free agency – where Chicago currently sits near the bottom of the league in salary-cap space — but building through the draft will be paramount.

The Bears have missed the playoffs eight of the last nine years for a variety of reasons, but draft miscues rank near the top. The Bears had four straight top-10 picks from 2015 to ’18 and just one postseason appearance (2018) to show for it.

Wide receiver Kevin White — the seventh overall pick in 2015 — is out of the league.nike nfl jerseys cheap paypal

Linebacker Leonard Floyd — the ninth overall selection in 2016 — is a full-time starter but not the kind of impactful player you’d expect from someone taken that high.8

Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky — the second overall pick in 2017 — regressed last season and is at the crossroads of his career in Chicago.

Linebacker Roquan Smith — chosen eighth overall in 2018 — followed up a solid rookie season with an up-and-down second year that included a one-game benching for personal reasons and ended with a trip to injured reserve because of a torn pectoral muscle.

For every Alshon Jeffery (second round, 2012), Kyle Fuller (first round, 2014), Eddie Goldman (second round, 2015), Cody Whitehair (second round, 2016), Nick Kwiatkoski (fourth round, 2016), Eddie Jackson (fourth round, 2017), Tarik Cohen (fourth round, 2017) and Bilal Nichols (fifth round, 2018), there have been as many, if not more, forgettable picks such as Shea McClellin (first round, 2012), Brandon Hardin (third round, 2012), Jon Bostic (second round, 2013), Ego Ferguson (second round, 2014), Will Sutton (third round, 2014), Hroniss Grasu (third round, 2015), Jonathan Bullard (third round, 2016) and Adam Shaheen (second round, 2017).

The Bears are still without a first-round draft choice because of the Khalil Mack trade, but Pace presently has seven picks, including No. 43 and No. 50 overall in the second round. Chicago could also be awarded a compensatory draft pick for losing safety Adrian Amos in free agency last spring.cheap nike nfl jerseys china

The Bears have several areas of need — tight end, quarterback, offensive line, safety, wide receiver and cornerback.