It may not be up to the Chicago Bears anyway ... While they may have an affinity for Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty near the top of the draft, the latest NFL Draft odds suggest that he will be off the board before the Bears are picking at No. 10. DraftKings Sportsbook set an over/under for Jeanty's average draft position at 9.5. The under is currently at -250, while the over comes in at +200.
This implies that it is more likely than not that Jeanty will be drafted before the Bears at picking at No. 10. The team to monitor the closest picking ahead of the Bears at No. 10 would have to be none other than the Las Vegas Raiders picking at No. 6. Other teams could conceivably draft Jeanty, but most are picking behind the Bears at No. 10, such as the Dallas Cowboys with the No. 12 overall selection.
So if the Bears are not expected to end up with Jeanty, who are they going to pick then? I took a look at what NFL Mock Draft Database had for an overall Bears consensus. Jeanty comes in third with a 13.5-percentage chance of going to the Bears. Ahead of him are LSU offensive tackle Will Campbell at 23.4 percent and Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. at 18.1 percent. Campbell is the favorite.
I will now explain why it might serve Ryan Poles to pick either Campbell or Banks over Jeanty anyway.
Why the Chicago Bears may not need to draft Ashton Jeanty at No. 10
Look. If Jeanty is there at No. 10 and the Bears are not sold on either Banks or Campbell, I could understand the front office's logic to take the former Boise State star running back. He is an electrifying player and it has been a painfully long time since the Bears were consistently good. Jeanty may take pressure off Caleb Williams on offense, but I would rather side with protection.
As the draft board unfolds, there is a chance that either Banks or Campbell, potentially even both, could be had for the Bears at No. 10. The best thing the team can do for itself is to give Williams as much time as he needs to be the quarterback he can in and around the pocket. Chicago has never had a 4,000-yard passer for a reason, but when the Bears win, they usually win because of line play.
Poles has been a polarizing front office figure ever since he came to Chicago. While I would argue that his stock is more up than down of late, there is still something about him I just cannot trust. When he has to make a difficult decision, he leaves me feeling unsure. By taking Jeanty, Poles would effectively be taking a home-run cut after a team like the Raiders opted to go in a different direction.
Banks and Campbell may be the safer play, but when has Poles ever decided to play it safe before?