Ryan Pace always says he thinks best player available but his track record says otherwise. This GM thinks about using the draft to plug needs and this year was no different. With his first pick of the NFL draft for the Chicago Bears, he once again attacked a position that has been a constant nightmare for the team going back years. Tight end Cole Kmet will stay close to home, coming in from Notre Dame to hopefully fix a position Pace hasn't been able to since he took over.
In a way, this isn't a surprise. Matt Nagy has pressed how important the tight end position is for his offense. It's been proven multiple times in Philadelphia and Kansas City. Kmet is undoubtedly the best player at that position in this draft. It's not even close really. He's a big, athletic guy with good hands and solid route running. His upside is considerable but was he the best player available? That is a fair question.
Chicago Bears got Kmet for Nick Foles
This pick feels like it was made expressly for quarterback Nick Foles. He has a long track record of loving to use the middle of the field with the tight ends. Pairing Kmet with Jimmy Graham suddenly gives him two solid options, forcing defenses to worry about an area of the field they didn't have to last season. In that context, this pick makes sense. Perhaps it will look better depending on how the 50th pick goes in a bit for them.
If nothing else, it's hard to criticize the Bears too much for this pick. It helps improve an offense that was 27th in the league last season. So any help is absolutely a good thing and the kid can definitely play. We'll see how things play out.
