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Chicago Bears: Grasu is First Miss for Pace in 2015 NFL Draft

By Kyle Brutman

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A little more than two hours after the Chicago Bears drafted its nose tackle of the future in Eddie Goldman with the 39th overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, general manager Ryan Pace took a bit of a step back with the selection of Oregon center Hroniss Grasu with the 71st overall pick.

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Grasu played a large part in the success of the Ducks, starting in 52 games during his four-year collegiate career, and was also the leader of the offensive line for most of his time in Eugene.

He doesn’t have many extremely strong points, but he doesn’t have many weak spots either. He is a little undersized for a center but has big hands and will not hesitate to challenge nose guards at the direct point of attack.

The reason for my opinion has absolutely nothing to do with his ability as a player. I think that he brings a winning attitude to a team that has trouble doing so as of late, and will be able to learn under the recently-signed veteran center Will Montgomery.

 Grasu is a great talent and will bring some depth to the center position, but I think that Chicago could have gone a different direction here. 

The way that Ryan Pace has drafted in the first two rounds, it would seem like he would go for a need rather than a depth chart stuffer. 

Oct 12, 2013; Seattle, WA, USA; Oregon Ducks running back Byron Marshall (9) carries the ball with Oregon Ducks offensive linesman Hroniss Grasu (55) blocking during the game against the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium. Oregon defeated Washington 45-24. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

He already took care of the need at wide receiver in the first round with Kevin White as well as the need at nose tackle with FSU’s Eddie Goldman,in Round 2, but there is still some work to do in the needs department.

One direction the Bears could have gone in the third round is addressing the pass rushing situation at outside linebacker. A player who stood out to me that was on the board at the time of Chicago’s pick was Virginia’s Eli Harold.

I was almost certain that they would go pass rusher here, and when they took a center I was taken completely off guard.

Harold makes the most sense here based on the pattern of drafting I picked up from Pace’s previous selections.

There is an obvious need for pure pass rushing linebackers in Chicago, especially now with the implementation of Vic Fangio’s pass rush-heavy 3-4 defensive scheme. Harold has shown that he can cut the corners of opposing offensive tackles to get to the quarterback fairly well, and has the length to complement the rest of his pass rushing ability.

Anyway, stepping away from my obsession with Eli Harold, Hroniss Grasu is a great center, and if he can learn well under Montgomery and other linemen, he could be of great value.

If he could learn to play at guard for backup purposes, that would also be of great benefit. He also was a teammate of guard Kyle Long at Oregon, so there will be a familiar face for Grasu on the roster

Overall, a solid pick but I feel the Bears could have addressed the center position later in the draft. Chicago didn’t go after a big need like they it have.

Next: Chicago Bears: Eddie Goldman Gives D Much-Needed Anchor

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