Chicago Bears: 7-Round 2018 mock draft in late January

Round 7: Jarrod Franklin, S, Tulane (6-0, 205 pounds)

The Chicago Bears have a history of looking for a defense-changing safety. It seems that they’ve looked for one ever since the 90s. What’s different this year is that they feel they have a very good starting safety unit. They got what I think was the steal of the draft last year, picking up Eddie Jackson in the fourth round even though he was a first-round talent.

In this year’s draft, they can take a flyer on someone who could provide depth instead of looking for a savior. Jarrod Franklin can do that.

Playing at Tulane Franklin didn’t get a lot of attention. In the postseason camps, however, he’s doing just that. Many thought of him as a possible rookie free agent, but now a lot see him as getting drafted. In the past two seasons, Franklin recorded 150 tackles (9.5 tackles for loss), two sacks, and two interceptions.

Franklin is another player who gives his team flexibility. He played most of his time at Tulane as a nickel corner, but moved over to safety because of a team need (team player = coach’s dream). He played well there too. Fangio can move him around on defense. As I mentioned earlier, having options is what everyone wants. Additionally, Ryan Pace loves to find diamonds in the rough, and this is the type of player he goes after.

Next: 2018 NFL Picks: Super Bowl 52 score prediction

If I didn’t mention in my last mock, I will now. I feel Pace likes to play “Let’s make a deal” in the draft. I see him making a move to get back into the third round and probably see him make a move to trade away his later picks. Pace’s drafts keep everyone on their toes, and the 2018 NFL Draft will be no different.