NEWSLETTER
Even though the Chicago Bears have plugged several notable holes this offseason, one biggie remains.
And it leaves me to ask a pertinent question: Who wants to play the 3-technique defensive tackle role?
Perhaps Illinois’ Johnny Newton is the answer.
Newton had what NFL reporter Jordan Schultz described as “an impressive Pro Day” on Tuesday. One in which Newton showed that he was healed from an injury that kept him from participating in drills at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. If Newton’s Pro Day performance is as advertised, then I hope the Bears were taking copious notes since they were in attendance for the festivities.
For what it’s worth, Newton was probably already on the Bears’ radar. Newton, who you might recall went by Jer’Zhan during the college football season, decided to forgo his senior season on campus after earning first-team All-Big Ten honors for the second straight season. I can’t say I blame him. In addition to getting first-team all-conference recognition, the Fighting Illini standout was a Consensus All-American in 2023 and recipient of the Nagurski-Woodson Defensive Player of the Year award handed out by the Big Ten. And for good measure, Newton was also the conference’s Smith-Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year award winner.
All of that hardware on his résumé figures to make Johnny Newton a hot name in NFL Draft war rooms. Perhaps even the Bears might kick the tires on drafting him.
Johnny Newton could be the 3-technique defensive tackle Matt Eberflus seeks for his defensive line
Justin Jones was a nice placeholder for the last two seasons. And I firmly believe the best is yet to come for Gervon Dexter Sr. as his development continues. But with the NFL Draft opening its doors in nine days, I’m open to the possibility of Bears General Manager Ryan Poles using a pick on a potential game-wrecker at that position. Maybe Johnny Newton fits the bill for the Bears.
NFL media draft guru Lance Zierlein’s prospect profile on Newton is an attention-grabber. Here is a snippet:
Active interior defender with the potential to build on his disruptive production in college. Newton’s size and length don’t stand out, but he has shown a consistent ability to gain extension and set edges against bigger opponents. Newton is clever in setting up blockers and then beating them with sudden hand usage and foot quickness as both a run defender and a pass rusher. He’s strong enough to hold the point, but he’s not going to overwhelm NFL guards with force or power. His skill level and athleticism should create additional playmaking opportunities for him as a three-down 3-technique with early starting potential.
Zierlein drops a Javon Hargrove comp on Johnny Newton, which makes me feel all kinds of tingly. Hargrave has made the Pro Bowl in two of the last three seasons. An impact player in the interior of the defensive line, Hargrave has averaged 8.5 sacks, 9 tackles-for-loss, and 16 quarterback hits over the last three years. Between the sack stats, quarterback hit numbers, and tackle-for-loss totals, Hargrave is the type of player you’d love to have anchoring the middle of your defense. And if the Bears can draft that type of player, I’d encourage them to do so with no hesitation.
But here’s the thing about Johnny Newton: I can’t bring myself to consider him as someone who could be a Bears target with the No. 9 pick. Maybe in a different year it makes sense. Perhaps I’d be open to it in a different time and place. But I just can’t get there right now. Drafting Newton that early would be a reach that I’m not comfortable with. With that being said, I’m not wholly opposed to the idea of drafting Newton.
Newton is the type of target who could conceivably be on Chicago’s radar in a trade-down. But where? There doesn’t seem to be consensus on Johnny Newton as a first-rounder. Based on recent mock drafts, it looks like Newton is destined to go in Round 2.
Take the latest mock draft from ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. as an example. Kiper has Newton going 49th overall to the Cincinnati Bengals. Meanwhile, Tuesday’s mock draft from league reporter and NFL Network “Good Morning Football” co-host Peter Schrager doesn’t have Newton as a first-rounder either. However, Matt Rooney’s latest Bleacher Nation mock draft has Newton going 29th to the Detroit Lions. I do not want the Lions having nice things or good players, so I wouldn’t love that pick. Early iterations of mock drafts had Newton as a first-rounder, so it is possible some team still views him as one. It’s just that so much has changed since the end of the college football season and today.
In the end, I won’t complain if a scenario presents itself where (1) a trade out of the No. 9 pick makes sense and (2) the Bears end up with a pick that they use on Johnny Newton. It’s just that ironing out that scenario nine days ahead of the NFL Draft is easier said than done.
