In his four previous drafts, Bears GM Ryan Pace and staff have been able to develop a “cloud” of players they assess as being worth the first-round pick that they held entering that draft. Their target clouds have ranged from three to seven players, and in each draft, they have emerged with one of their desired players.
But in each of those drafts Pace and the Bears were in a position to use a rifle approach rather than a shotgun. They began the 2015 draft at No. 7 (Kevin White); at No. 11 in 2016, then traded up into the top 10 at No.