Jerry Angelo Makes Best of Late Picks

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

When the Bears made one of the biggest offseason splashes by trading for Jay Cutler, they were left without a first-round pick. Many Bears fans would argue this was a blessing in disguise, considering general manager Jerry Angelo's rocky history with first-round picks (David Terrell, Cedric Benson, Rex Grossman, Michael Haynes).

Still, there were more needs than just quarterback on this team for the near future. Would Angelo be able to fill all those holes with a bunch of second-day draft picks?

He only had second-day picks because he traded the Bears second-rounder -- reportedly because Michael Mitchell and Brian Robiskie were both gone. The Bears headed into the second day of the draft with nine picks. As opposed to the pretty sub-par track record with first rounders, Angelo is actually pretty astute at finding gems after the first round. Here are some of the productive players he's found on Draft Day 2 in his Bears tenure, with the round number in parentheses: Marcus Harrison (3), Craig Steltz (5), Zackary Bowman (6), Josh Beekman (4), Kevin Payne (5), Corey Graham (5), Trumaine McBride (7), Dusty Dvoracek (3), Mark Anderson (5), Kyle Orton (4), Chris Harris (6), Bernard Berrian (3), Nathan Vasher (4), Lance Briggs (3), Todd Johnson (4), Ian Scott (4), Justin Gage (5) and Alex Brown (4).

So, yeah, I felt comfortable that Angelo would come away with 3-5 helpful players from those nine second-day picks.

Here's a summary of the team's most glaring needs heading into that all-important day.

Must Have

1. (tie) Wide receivers. Yes, plural. Devin Hester, Earl Bennett and Rashied Davis were the only ones in the cupboard for the newly acquired signal-caller. He needed to get at least two.
Filled? Yes. Angelo did as much as he could have with the late picks. Juaquin Iglesias is going to have to step onto the field as a rookie, and he was a great value pick where the Bears got him. The other two just add depth, but he had to try and land another good receiver. Taking two more, we'll just hope one works.

1. (tie) Pass rushers. The Bears blitzed more than any team in the NFL last season, yet ranked in the bottom-third of the league in sacks. A major part of the Bears discrepancy between rush and pass defense was the lack of pressure on the quarterback. A shift in coaching strategy with Lovie Smith and Rod Marinelli now running things instead of the maligned Bob Babich should help, but some new personnel would as well.
Filled? Yes. Jarron Gilbert has freakish athleticism, and, as a bonus, he'll provide up-the-middle pressure. The Bears have great run-stoppers up the middle, but hadn't gotten good pass pushes from there. Middle pressure should help open the outside a bit more for Brown, Anderson and Adewale Ogunleye. Henry Melton was added as a project speed rusher. He's a converted running back who will require lots of coaching and probably won't make an immediate impact.

3. Defensive backfield depth. With the departure of Mike Brown, the Bears are in need of safety help. At corner, it doesn't really seem like they can continue to lean on Vasher after two injury-riddled/unproductive seasons. There are other corners on the roster who could replace Vasher, but none are sure things, so depth can't hurt.
Filled? Not completely. D.J. Moore was a steal where he was taken, so he'll join the fray at corner. At safety, the Bears only added a 6th rounder who may not make the team. It looks like Manning, Payne, Steltz and Josh Bullocks are going to be the 2009 safeties -- assuming none of the corners are bumped back.

Luxuries

4. Backup quarterback. Behind Cutler are Caleb Hanie (undrafted free agent who didn't take a snap as a rookie last season) and Brett Basanez (hasn't played since his 2006 rookie season, when he only attempted 11 passes in trash time).
Filled? No, but they did sign undrafted free agent Chase Patton to add to backup competition.

5. Backup running back. Matt Forte got an awful lot of work last season, so grabbing someone to take the pressure off him wouldn't hurt. Kevin Jones and Adrian Peterson weren't productive last season.
Filled? No. Still, it was a luxury. It's possible the added passing offense enables more production from Jones and Peterson.

6. Linebacker depth. They have two studs, but after that it's pretty thin in terms of talent.
Filled? Yes. Ohio State's Marcus Freeman could end up being a starter down the line. Perfect pick with eyes on the future instead of the present while not ignoring other areas of need.

7. Offensive line depth. This was mostly taken care of via free agency, but you can never have too much protection for Cutler and Forte.
Filled? No, but he really had too many other pressing needs. The line should be just fine in 2009.

Draft Picks
3 (68) Gilbert, DT, San Jose State
3 (99) Iglesias, WR, Oklahoma
4 (105) Melton, DE, Texas
4 (119) Moore, CB, Vanderbilt
5 (140) Johnny Knox, WR, Abilene Christian
5 (154) Freeman, OLB, Ohio State
6 (190) Al Afalava, S, Oregon State
7 (246) Lance Louis, TE, San Diego State
7 (251) Derek Kinder, WR, Pittsburgh

GRADE: A. You have to consider they didn't get to draft until Day 2 because of the Cutler acquisition. That has to count as part of the draft. With the rest of the picks, it's incredibly difficult to judge how the picks will pan out, being low-rounders. Judging from ratings from scouts and using Angelo's track record, though, he appeared to have an impeccable day in terms of filling the needs of his team.