LAKE FOREST – There's not much to glean from preseason games. For Bears fans, these games will give them a first look at Luke Getsy's offense and a glimpse of quarterback Justin Fields's progress.
But more importantly, it gave us our first chance to gauge general manager Ryan Poles' talent evaluation chops.
Most of the 2022 Bears roster are holdovers from the previous regime. Poles dabbled around the margins in free agency. He brought in a few critical veterans on short-term deals but stayed out of the deep end of the pool apart from a failed attempt to secure Larry Ogunjobi.
Poles' first true attempt to add talent came in the 2022 NFL Draft. The preseason has given us our first look at Kyler Gordon, Jaquan Brisker, and Velus Jones Jr. How Poles utilizes the Bears' top draft assets is of vital importance to this rebuild.
But the ability to identify talent in the later rounds that other teams overlook can be the difference between a moderately successful rebuild and one that ends with a confetti shower in February.
Take the 49ers, a franchise viewed as one of the model operations in the NFL, for example.
Star tight end George Kittle, running back Elijah Mitchell, linebacker Dre Greenlaw, slot receiver Jauan Jennings, and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley all were drafted in the fifth round or later. Moseley went undrafted.
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That's how you fill out a winning roster. By hitting on the guys no one else sees.
Through three weeks of camp and two preseason games, two players from the deep cuts of the Bears' rookie class are showing Poles might be made of the right stuff -- undrafted linebacker Jack Sanborn and seventh-round safety Elijah Hicks.
Sanborn, a Lake Zurich native who starred at Wisconsin, was a high-IQ tackling machine for the Badgers. Questions about his athleticism and fit in the modern NFL saw his phone never ring on draft weekend. But Poles snapped him up quickly.
The early returns have been impressive. Through two preseason games, Sanborn has recorded an interception and fumble recovery while also making a massive contribution on special teams. He's also the Bears' highest-graded player by Pro Football Focus through the two games.
"Jack Sanborn, you guys can't deny it right now, his production, "special teams coordinator Richard Hightower said Wednesday. "He made two tackles inside the 20 last game, he made tackles the game before that, he had an interception on defense. I mean, I just think that's just, he had a fumble recovery, too, right? So, everyone can see that.
"And the cool thing about that is Ryan, and Ian [Cunningham], and Trey [Koziol], those personnel guys saw it before anybody else saw it and their ability to be able to find talent like that as an undrafted free agent, it's pretty darn good. So, I'm excited about Jack Sanborn and I hope that he continues to progress."
Sanborn entered training camp needing to make waves to secure a roster spot. He has the profile of a two-down SAM linebacker whose athletic limitations might take him off the field when the Bears go into nickel.
But after a brilliant stretch of camp, it feels like Sanborn will be a roster lock due to his intelligence, ability to help on special teams, and insatiable hunger to get better.
"Really smart, tough, instinctive," linebackers coach Dave Borgonzi said of Sanborn. "The biggest thing with Jack too is he's the type of guy that he improves every day. He doesn't make the same mistake twice, so he keeps improving. And that's the thing with Jack, he's still going to keep improving. He's not there yet, but just his ability to self-correct, not make the same mistake twice and his intensity that he brings every day to the meeting room and the practice film. "
Hicks is potentially another diamond in the rough.
The Cal product suffered a Jones fracture in the pre-draft process, forcing him to slip in the draft. The Bears were more than happy to grab him in the seventh round.
Hicks didn't practice during the offseason program while rehabbing, but he made an early impression in training camp with his coverage ability.
"I really like his movement skills," head coach Matt Eberflus said. "Elijah's really doing a good job. You're focused on that in the open field and also in man-to-man coverage. Can he mirror and stay with guys and then also be stout? Because it's a physical game when you're playing man-to-man, and he can do that. Can he anchor and stay attached to the tight ends or backs or whoever he's covering? But yeah, I've been impressed."
But it's on special teams where Hicks has found a home while fighting to secure a roster spot. Hicks' high motor is perfect for the Bears' H.I.T.S principle (hustle, intensity, takeaways, smarts), and he showed it off in the second preseason game when he recovered a muffed punt for a touchdown against the Seahawks.
That early success on special teams was no surprise to Hightower.
"Well, he had a touchdown," Hightower said with a laugh when asked about Hicks. "I like that. My evaluation of him is the same as what you guys if you saw the video when he went viral when he got drafted, like he's the guy that's a ball of energy every day. He's a guy that comes to work, lunch pail mentality. He also sits in the front of the meeting room. He's the first to ask questions. He's a sponge."
Hicks is part of a safety room that includes Eddie Jackson, Brisker, and the ultra-versatile DeAndre Houston-Carson. Hicks has the talent to be a starter one day, but he knows his best chance to make the roster will be contributing in other areas.
"I think he's a team guy," safeties coach Andre Curtis said. "He wants to contribute in any way he can, and that's got to be the mindset of any young player. You don't know, and sometimes the quickest way to carve your niche is through special teams. And he's smart enough to know that. You do some good things there, other opportunities will open up for you.
"He's embraced the challenge. He's that type of kid. He's wired for special teams. He loves it."
Throw in fifth-round pick Braxton Jones, who is on track to be the Bears' starting left tackle, and Poles has no loafs on his early report card.
The Bears general manager has a lot of work to do before he cements himself as one of the NFL's great evaluators. But with Brisker making a loud first impression, Gordon showcasing his rare movement skills, Jones developing quickly, and Sanborn and Hicks shining in the preseason, he's off to a good start.