Recent updates about the Chicago Bears’ draft evaluations suggest they’re paying extra attention to the defensive line. Hardly a surprise when your head coach is a defensive guy and your new defensive coordinator is a line specialist. Shortly after a large contingent attended the pro day of defensive tackle Leonard Taylor of Miami, another name popped up on the radar. This time it is Illinois defensive tackle Keith Randolph, who stated in an interview that he has now met the Bears twice. The first came at the Senior Bowl, and another via a virtual meeting.
Randolph isn’t the same caliber of athlete as teammate Jer’Zhan Newton. That will likely impact how high he goes in the draft. However, that didn’t stop him from making a serious impact. In 2021 and 2022, he had a combined total of nine sacks and 18.5 tackles for a loss. He also had 95 tackles. Randolph is the living embodiment of a worker bee. What he lacks in pure athletic skill he makes up with motor, intelligence, and a not insignificant amount of power. It’s not hard to see why the Bears like him. Justin Melo of The Draft Network was the one who found out about the interest.
“I’ve been meeting with teams virtually through Zoom and whatnot. I recently met with the Cardinals, Seahawks, Bears, and Colts on Zoom. I have a bunch more scheduled as well. I also met with every team at the Senior Bowl.”
The defensive line is the key to this scheme functioning properly. Eberflus needs a deep group so he can throw waves of rushers at the quarterback all game long. Adding Montez Sweat and Gervon Dexter were big wins for the team last season. However, they need more. Joseph seems like a great option for a rotational backup at defensive tackle. He can give them the versatility to play nose tackle while also having more pass rush juice than he gets credit for. There is no question that his background as a team captain means he checks the character boxes.
It comes down to where they may want to take him. They only have one pick on Day 3 of the draft. That is in the 4th round. It is unlikely the Chicago Bears would take him before that. GM Ryan Poles is almost certain to try adding more picks via trade at some point during the draft. If he can get one or two in the 5th or 6th round range, that feels like the perfect range for Randolph. There is no doubt he’d be a welcome addition to an already solid locker room.
