Wondering about a player, a past game or another issue involving the Bears? Senior writer Larry Mayer answers a variety of questions from fans on ChicagoBears.com.
What positions are the deepest in this year's draft that the Bears might benefit from with their four sixth-round picks?
Rich
Most draft analysts that I've read or listened to feel that quarterback, wide receiver and offensive tackle are the deepest positions in the draft. Some draftniks are predicting that quarterbacks could be selected with the first four picks for the first time in history and that a fifth will be chosen in the first half of the first round as well. There seems to be a drop-off after that. There were 16 wide receivers chosen among the top 100 picks last year and this year's crop appears to be nearly as deep. The Bears unearthed a gem in the fifth round last year with Darnell Mooney and likely will have an opportunity to do so again this year if they so choose. Analysts also agree that this is one of the strongest offensive tackle crops in several years.
With one preseason game being eliminated, is the NFL going to push back training camp and the start of the preseason one week?
Fred G.
Michigan
No, it is my understanding that training camp and the preseason will begin at the same time they usually do. The difference with the NFL reducing the number of preseason games teams play from four to three will mean that there will be no games on the Thursday night of what had been the final preseason week, which will give every NFL team a bye weekend before the start of the regular season. So the first three preseason weeks will remain the same as they've been in the past, just no fourth preseason game.
With the NFL season expanding to 17 games, durable players are that much more valuable. How many Bears players last year were healthy enough to play all 17 games?
Kevin T.
Dyer, Indiana
The Bears actually played 17 games last season, if you count the wild-card playoff loss to the Saints. Here are the 20 players on the current roster who participated in all 17 games during the 2020 season:
OL Alex Bars
TE Jimmy Graham
TE J.P. Holtz
S DeAndre Houston-Carson
OL Germain Ifedi
LB Joel Iyiegbuniwe
S Eddie Jackson
TE Cole Kmet
LT Charles Leno Jr.
OLB Khalil Mack
WR Anthony Miller
RB Ryan Nall
DT Bilal Nichols
P Pat O'Donnell
OLB Robert Quinn
WR Allen Robinson II
K Cairo Santos
LS Patrick Scales
ILB Danny Trevathan
CB Kindle Vildor
Chalk Talk features fan questions multiple times each week. Email your question to Larry.
