Chicago Bears: 7-Round 2020 mock draft at end of regular season

I’m not sure how the Ha Ha Clinton-Dix experiment worked for the Chicago Bears. He’s had a good but not impactful season. He becomes a free agent after the season and I don’t think the team pays him the money he might seek.

Another reason he might not return is that while Jackson is a Pro Bowl player this season, like Mack he isn’t having his typical dominant season. Jackson moved over to strong safety and playing in the box kept him from being the impactful player he’s been. Perhaps a move back to free safety helps him dominate again.

Jaylinn Hawkins can come in and allow Jackson to make that move. The 6-2, 210-pound safety offers the Bears a lot of flexibility. Cal had Hawkins move all over the field — box safety, free safety, nickel corner and high safety. Defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano would love to have such an asset to work with.

Even though he has just two interceptions this season, Hawkins hauled in six of them last season so he has the ability to be a ball hawk himself. Imagine having both Jackson and Hawkins intercepting over a handful of passes in a season.

Hawkins has the strength to keep up with tight ends or slot receivers. He has the ability to redirect routes and doesn’t mind contact. He has good recognition and can analyze routes right away.

One of the criticisms of Hawkins is that he sometimes plays with too much patience. He’ll be late on tackles sometimes because he plays too cautiously. With Pagano as his coach and Jackson as his teammate, that will be fixed.

Having Jackson move back to free safety helps both him and the Chicago Bears defense. Adding Hawkins gives the defense not only another ballhawk but also a versatile player who can play all over the field. That helps the defense go back to being the dominant force it was in 2018.