Former Exec Warns Bears Would Regret Drafting Kelvin Banks

Plenty of names have floated around the Chicago Bears at the 10th overall pick ahead of the draft. Things are getting serious now. The action is mere days away. Nobody can quite figure out what GM Ryan Poles will do. Right now, as weak as it is, the consensus seems to think he will opt to go for a left tackle depending on how the board falls. That means one of two names: Will Campbell or Kelvin Banks. Almost every prominent expert doesn’t believe Campbell will get past the New England Patriots at #4. In that case, Banks is the only viable option unless they’re willing to risk shifting Armand Membou from his natural right tackle spot.

Former scouting director Greg Gabriel believes this would be a huge mistake. Forget taking Banks at #10. The idea of taking him in the 1st round at all would be dangerous. He said as much in a recent post.

The name I see in here often for the Bears at 10 if both Campbell and and Membou are gone is Kelvin Banks. In my opinion, he’s not a top 20, let alone a top 10. He did not have a great season.

If you don’t want to believe me, that’s fine, but none of the top three analysts (Daniel Jeremiah, Dane Brugler, Mel Kiper) have him in their Top 25. DJ did say on Friday that ONE team he talked to has him higher than the others. Of course he didn’t say who.

Banks is easily one of the most divisive prospects in this class. Some see him as a legitimate franchise left tackle after his sustained run at Texas. Others believe there are too many holes in his game, and he is destined to move inside to guard. NFL.com has him ranked 14th in their overall board.

Kelvin Banks isn’t guaranteed to make the Bears better.

That is the core issue of this argument. Chicago already has a left tackle they can at least deem solid. Braxton Jones isn’t perfect, but he isn’t a liability. The only reason to draft a left tackle would be a degree of certainty that the team is upgrading. It doesn’t sound like that is the case with Kelvin Banks. He’s a good athlete but not an elite one. He has good size but only average arm length and suffers from notable technique issues that shouldn’t be a continuing problem after three years starting for a top program. His primary comp for the NFL is Christian Darrisaw. That isn’t necessarily bad. However, don’t forget Darrisaw was drafted in the 20s range, not #10. So if the Bears are set on Banks, they need to trade down first. That is the only way they can justify such a decision without looking weak from an evaluation perspective.