Chicago Bears: 5 Biggest needs in 2020 NFL Draft after free agency
2. Tight End
Current tight ends on the roster: Trey Burton, Jimmy Graham, Adam Shaheen, Ben Braunecker, Demetrius Harris, J.P. Holtz, Jesper Horsted
The Chicago Bears got absolutely nothing from their tight end unit in 2019. The five players who played the position totaled 44 catches for 395 yards and two touchdowns. New tight end Graham had 38 catches for 447 yards and three touchdowns just by himself.
Burton spent the 2019 season injured. He had offseason sports hernia surgery and while trying to compensate he suffered several other injuries. Shaheen spent more of his career in the trainer’s room than on the field and 2019 was no different. He only had nine catches for 74 yards and no touchdowns. Head coach Matt Nagy even questioned his work ethic. Amazingly, he’s still on the roster.
The Bears hope that Burton and Graham work together to give the offense better contributions. The other tight ends combined don’t provide much to the offense. They can play a few snaps in a backup role but most likely are special teams contributors.
The Bears are set to spend over $22.4 million on their tight ends unit. Yes, about $14.5 million of that is for Burton and Graham, but expect some more cuts to bring that number down. They can free up some space and look to extend a player or two this offseason (like an extension for Robinson).
While the Bears have Burton and Graham, both of them could be gone in 2021. The Bears have an out with each player after 2020. If they part ways with them, the team saves $14.1 million in cap space. For them to do that, they need to have at least one player who could step up and be a starter. That player needs to come from the draft.
Prospects to target: Cole Kmet is the one player that most draft experts feel is the most NFL-ready prospect. At 6-6 and 262 pounds, he has the body teams look for in a tight end. Adam Trautman might have the best upside. He played at Dayton so some question his competition (the same thing said of Shaheen). Brycen Hopkins of Purdue was the Big Ten’s tight end of the year. The Bears reportedly met with him three times already so they may be really interested in him.