Ex-Bears Coach Mike Tice Urges Them To Draft Max Iheanachor — And Why He’s Right
The Chicago Bears are suddenly becoming favorites to address the left tackle position in the 1st round of the upcoming draft. Several insiders, including Peter Schrager and Adam Jahns, have hinted at it over the past week. It makes sense. Ozzy Trapilo faces a long road to recovery from the knee injury he sustained in January. Braxton Jones and Jedrick Wills are both on one-year deals. The team needs to consider adding some form of insurance. If they aren’t sure about Trapilo’s long-term prospects, drafting a left tackle with the 25th pick isn’t a hard sell. Mike Tice agrees.
What nobody knows is who they should pick. Expectations are that a few intriguing names should be available when they go on the clock. Caleb Lomu of Utah and Blake Miller of Clemson are two who have come up a lot over the past several days. However, the former Bears offensive coordinator believes the one who deserves the real attention is Max Iheanachor of Arizona State. The longtime offensive line expert thinks he has the most upside of anybody in this class, with every primary issue being easily fixable with coaching.
Tice explained in detail on Football 301 with his son, Nate Tice.
The Bears would be wise to listen to Mike Tice.
Nobody argues that his three years with the team were a mixed bag. His offensive line didn’t perform overly well in that time, though part of that was the lack of talent to work with. One thing nobody can dispute is that Tice has an eye for talent. During his stint in Minnesota from 1997 to 2005, he had a direct hand in drafting six-time Pro Bowl center Matt Birk and Pro Bowl right tackle Bryant McKinnie. During his brief stint with the Atlanta Falcons in 2014, he helped them draft and develop Pro Bowl left tackle Jake Matthews.
This is without mentioning the fact that he played in the NFL for 14 years as a tight end, rubbing shoulders with outstanding blockers like Howard Ballard, Russ Grimm, Joe Jacoby, and Randall McDaniel. The man knows what the good ones are supposed to look like. If he’s pushing for a lineman, it would be wise to pay attention. The Minnesota Vikings certainly did last year when they took Donovan Jackson in the 1st round. He started 14 games as a rookie. Iheanachor getting his stamp of approval is a big deal.
He checks plenty of the Bears’ boxes.
GM Ryan Poles likes his tackles to be big athletes. That was the case with Darnell Wright and again with Trapilo. Iheanachor is 6’6″ and 321 lbs, but still runs a 4.91 in the 40-yard dash. Guys that size who can move like that are rare. Throw in his 34-inch arms and you start to see the appeal. The primary concern is his lack of polish. Having come over from Nigeria, Iheanachor hasn’t played football for long. Only five years. You can see the rawness in multiple areas of his game. That means you’ll need good coaching to help him take the final steps.
Thankfully, the Chicago Bears have that covered with Ben Johnson and Dan Roushar. Both are highly skilled at developing young offensive linemen. Mike Tice knows his stuff. If he thinks the young man has greatness in him, then this is a move the Bears have to consider. There is no doubt he has the athleticism to handle shifting to left tackle. Chicago has already proven they can help a young player make the transition with Trapilo. If they’re committed to locking down that left side, maybe they take Tice’s advice.