Kyle Long Insists Alex Bars Is Not Just A Backup For The Bears

The Chicago Bears were hoping to avoid major injuries this season. Sadly it's the NFL and these things happen all the time. The problem is they took a big one in an area they could least afford it. Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, left guard James Daniels suffered a torn pectoral. Expectations are he is done for the year. Former undrafted free agent Alex Bars stepped in to replace him during the game, but many have doubts about his long-term viability. Don't count Kyle Long among them. When it became clear that Daniels was out for the game on Thursday night, he made his opinion on Bars known right away.

Long isn't alone in that sentiment. Offensive line coach Juan Castillo expressed plenty of confidence in the second-year blocker.

Much of the fear with Bars was his introduction.

The moment he got onto the field after Daniels went down, he was blown up by Bucs nose tackle Vita Vea for a sack. An ugly start to his first real action on an NFL field. To his credit though, he didn't seem to let that bother him. Bars finished the game without any other notable mistakes. It feels like the team plans to move forward with him as the spot-starter at left guard. While that will make some people nervous, it's important to remember something. The 25-year old had a lot of fans coming out of college.

Alex Bars was on his way to being drafted before injury struck

People automatically go to the fact that Bars was undrafted. This must mean he isn't a capable blocker. Yet anybody who watched his college tape would know that was a load of bull. He wasn't drafted because he tore his ACL in September of 2018. There was little chance he'd be 100% ready for the start of the 2019 season. So teams didn't bother risking a pick. Kyle Crabbs of The Draft Network though made it clear the guy was being overlooked. He rated Bars as a 3rd round pick going into the draft.

"Alex Bars, health willing, projects well as a potential starting offensive guard at the NFL level. Bars' physicality and power at the POA shine bright in gap/power concepts and he was the needed tenacity to press through contact and uproot even the heaviest of anchors. Bars needs to focus on sustaining the width of his framed blocks to prevent spinning off contact, but he's got requisite athleticism and a compact punch to help him play with good power at first contact."

The Bears have had their share of success with 3rd round pick offensive linemen in the past. Names like Olin Kreutz and Jerry Fontenot come to mind. Alex Bars has the power and necessary athleticism if healthy. Not to mention standout intelligence. He comes from an offensive line factory at Notre Dame. If given an opportunity, it shouldn't shock anybody if he runs with it.