Ryan Poles Can’t Help Himself As Bears Eye Another Freakish CB
One thing that GM Ryan Poles has remained consistent about is investing at premium positions. To him, those include the offensive line, pass rushers, and cornerbacks. If people thought he was exaggerating when he first took over the Chicago Bears in 2022, they better take him seriously now. Over his first two drafts, Poles has selected three cornerbacks. Two of them, Kyler Gordon and Tyrique Stevenson, were 2nd round picks. This Bears regime seems to think there is no such thing as too many talented corners.
Even as they focus on key needs like tackle, pass rusher and wide receiver, they’ve quietly been meeting with some of the higher-ranked corners in this draft class. Another got added to that list according to Justin Melo of The Draft Network. Chicago is showing interest in Notre Dame standout Cam Hart. While not always consistent for much of his college career, he took big strides in 2023, matching up well against some of the best receivers in the country. It isn’t hard to see the appeal. There aren’t many 6’3 corners with 33-inch arms and 4.5 speed in the NFL.
Ryan Poles knows who he’d be handing Hart over to.
We’ve already seen how good head coach Matt Eberflus and his staff are at developing young cornerbacks. Gordon and Stevenson have both excelled early in their careers. Even rookie Terell Smith had some promising performances. There is no doubt Eberflus and secondary coach Jon Hoke would love to get their hands on a gifted project like Hart. He has the athleticism, physicality, and swagger for the position. The primary issues are his inconsistent ball production and lack of discipline in coverage.
Such things can be coached. Hart earned comparisons to Washington starter Benjamin St. Juste. He was a 3rd round pick for them in 2021. After two inconsistent years, he blossomed last season with an interception and 17 passes defended. Not to mention a sack and a career-high 67 tackles. This means Ryan Poles may feel Hart will be an option in the 3rd round, which is when the Bears next pick after #9 overall. It would mark the third straight draft where they took a cornerback in the top three rounds, the first time any GM has ever done that in franchise history.