What's in a Name?
With the draft now over, we look towards the upcoming season. Checking the roster and depth chart to see what names rise to the top. After drafting San Diego State's tackle, Zach Thomas, the Bears now have three really big named players on the roster. We can now say that we have Zach Thomas, Joe Thomas, and Lamar Jackson on our team!
Zach Thomas- Bears OL
Zach Thomas- Dolphins MLB
Well, instead of drafting this last year's Hall of Fame finalist, GM Ryan Poles took the second of four offensive linemen at pick 186. He's aggressive in the run much like the former Zach Thomas, difference being offense vs defense. If he can improve on his pass blocking he will be a solid addition.
Joe Thomas- Bears LB
Joe Thomas- Browns OT
Hall of Fame tackle for the Browns, Joe Thomas amassed an impressive 10,000 consecutive snaps played. He was relentless and dedicated. Hopefully that's what Poles seen in the 31 year old linebacker who has only started 16 games in his eight years in the league.
Lamar Jackson- Bears DB
Lamar Jackson- Ravens QB
Both Jacksons got passed on during their drafts. Ravens taking their Lamar from Louisville back in 2018 as he fell all the way to the end of the first-round. The Bear's newest DB was a 2020 undrafted free agent for the Jets out of Nebraska. he did start in six games but was mostly a practice squad player.
Poles signed these huge names for relatively low price tags. Even though they don't look like each other, they don't play the same positions, they never even wore the same number and there's nothing we can really compare them to outside their names. Though it's not the same as last year's draft, looking at the board and seeing Patrick Surtain II and Asante Samuel Jr. It is still fun to look at a roster and reminisce. Lets just hope that these guys can live up to their name's reputation!
