The Chicago Bears were poised to be one of the biggest winners in the 2024 NFL draft. Chicago had two of the first nine selections, after all.
Drafting QB Caleb Williams with the No. 1 pick and WR Rome Odunze at No. 9 delivered upon the pre-draft value promise. Sports Info Solutions, or SIS, graded out the Bears as having the top draft value haul of any of the 32 teams.
The SIS grading methodology, in a nutshell,
These rankings do not account for positional value, the value of where players were drafted, or trades teams made; it is literally based on the grades we gave the players who were drafted and how much talent we feel teams got from their selections compared to the number of picks they made.
Chicago hit big with Williams, Odunze, third-round OT Kiran Amegadjie and fifth-round EDGE Austin Booker. They took a hit with fourth-round punter Tory Taylor, though SIS acknowledged that they do not rank punters or international players, of which Taylor is both. Their grade was a 6.46.
At the other end of the grading spectrum sits the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville’s nine picks earned just 5.93 in SIS’s metrics. Some of that was a function of having so many picks; SIS notes that it’s harder for teams with lots of picks, especially late-round picks, to score well, but they were not impressed,
This year’s worst class goes to the Jaguars. This comes a year after they ranked No. 31. They traded back and selected Brian Thomas Jr. (SIS No. 5 WR, No. 23 Overall), who should become a strong target and deep threat for Trevor Lawrence, but aside from him, only Javon Foster (SIS No. 15 OT) graded out as better than a top backup. While Maason Smith (SIS No. 13 DT) has the measurables and a high ceiling, we thought a mid-2nd Round pick was a bit of a reach.
It’s an interesting look at the draft class through some different eyes and perspectives.