In assigning grades for the draft, NFL.com's Chad Reuter gave the Bears straight A's.
The NFC North champions earned an overall grade of "A" from Reuter, an "A" for Day 1 of the draft when the first round was conducted, an "A-" for Rounds 2-3 on Day 2 and an "A" for Rounds 4-7 on Day 3.
The Bears traded their first- and sixth-round picks to the Raiders in exchange for outside linebacker Khalil Mack and dealt their second-round selection to the Patriots to move up to choose receiver Anthony Miller in the second round last year.
The Bears picked five players in the draft: Iowa State running back David Montgomery at No. 73 in the third round, Georgia receiver Riley Ridley at No. 126 in the fourth round, Kansas State cornerback Duke Shelley at No, 205 in the sixth round, and Florida Atlantic running back Kerrith Whyte Jr. at No. 222 and Valdosta State cornerback Stephen Denmark at No. 238 in the seventh round.
"Khalil Mack was 100 percent worthy of the Bears' interest," Reuter wrote. "He played lights-out in 2018 and I suspect will be a force over the next few seasons, barring injury (which was a bit of a concern last year). There's no question he was worth giving up their 2019 first- and sixth-round picks, as well as the 2020 third-round pick as a sweetener. And parting with a 2020 first-round pick and swapping second-round picks with the Raiders next year may only be a minimal loss for the Bears if they are a playoff team and Oakland does not greatly exceed its win total from last season.
"When they were finally on the clock Friday night, the Bears found their new running back in Montgomery, who can carry a heavy workload. They had to give up a 2020 fourth-round pick as part of the deal, though.
"Getting Ridley in the fourth round was an absolute steal. I thought he was a second-round value. Shelley could be a nice slot corner. He hid behind Devin Singletary at FAU, but the Bears thought enough of Whyte to pair him with Montgomery at RB in their draft class."
