The Chicago Bears have made a lot of errors in recent years, but Kole Noble of A to Z Sports is calling on them to admit yet another mistake. The drafting of wide receiver Velus Jones Jr.
The Bears took Jones in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft with the expectation that he would become an integral part of their receiving corps. He has done anything but the sort.
During his rookie campaign, Jones played in just 12 games due to injuries and was not very effective when he was on the field, logging only seven catches for 107 yards and a touchdown. As a matter of fact, he got more burn as a rusher, carrying the ball nine times for 103 yards and a score. He also muffed a pair of punts as a returner.
This year, Jones has been even less impactful, appearing in seven of Chicago’s eight contests and totaling three catches for nine yards while carrying the ball four times for 22 yards.
Jones also bungled what should have been a touchdown grab during the Bears’ Week 8 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, falling down on a ball that was thrown into the end zone from quarterback Tyson Bagent. To be fair to Jones, the ball was poorly thrown, but it still should have been caught given that he was wide open.
To the 26-year-old’s credit, he took responsibility after the game and said he would not let the miscue “define” who he was.
But taking accountability doesn’t matter all that much when the production simply isn’t there.
Unfortunately for both Velus Jones Jr. and the Bears, the pairing has simply not worked out these first two years of the wide out’s career, and it certainly may be time for Chicago general manager Ryan Poles to admit that he messed up with this pick. Of course, that isn’t suggesting to say he should state it publicly, but perhaps moving on from Jones after the season would be the best course of action.
The Bears are 2-6 on the year and will take on the New Orleans Saints next Sunday.
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