Quarterbacks will shape the top of NFL draft while Bears enjoy the view
Ryan Pace finally is enjoying his view as the NFL draft approaches.
A year after trading up to select quarterback Mitch Trubisky second overall, the Bears' fourth-year general manager sees other quarterback-needy teams jockeying for position atop the first round. That stress is behind him.
"It's easier to sleep," Pace said, "not only when you feel like you have the guy who has all the physical traits, but when he has the makeup you really want in that position."
Pace and the Bears, though, still are affected by this year's heralded quarterback class, if not invested in it.
If four are drafted in the top seven, they would have a better chance of landing their preferred non-quarterback with the eighth pick. That's one of the Bears' best-case scenarios.
The other: Three quarterbacks go in the top seven and some team determined to select the fourth trades for the Bears' pick.
Hey, they can dream.
Reality, at least, is on their side. Teams understand that having a quality quarterback equates to sustained success, so their determination - or desperation - to pick one is shaping this year's draft.
USC's Sam Darnold, Wyoming's
