Which wide receivers might be available to the Bears with the 39th overall draft pick?

The Bears have no choice but to address the wide receiver position this offseason. Currently, Darnell Mooney is the only receiver with any legitimate NFL experience at the position.

Other than Mooney, Dazz Newsome, Nsimba Webster and Isaiah Coulter are under contract for 2022. Allen Robinson, Jakeem Grant, Marquise Goodwin and Damiere Byrd are all set to hit free agency.

One of the primary goals this offseason must be to surround quarterback Justin Fields with as many weapons as possible. The 2021 Bears did not surround him with enough weapons. Or, in the case of Robinson, they did not optimize those weapons. This is likely going to be a complete retool of the receiver position. It will need to be addressed both in free agency in March and in the draft in April.

Coach Matt Eberflus spoke at this week’s NFL Scouting Combine about the need to have weapons who can do different things.

“One guy might be quick and he’s really a short-route runner,” Eberflus said. “Another guy can do it all. That would be our No. 1 receiver. Should be able to do that. And the other guy should be able to take the top off the defense. That puts stress on the defense. Then you couple that with a tight end that has the ability to flex out and create mismatches.”

Expect the Bears to go out and look for one of the top free-agent receivers on the market this month, assuming Robinson doesn’t sign an extension. If the top targets – Robinson, Davante Adams, Chris Godwin, Mike Williams, potentially Amari Cooper – are simply too high an asking price (Adams almost certainly will be out of the Bears’ price range), they almost certainly will look to sign somebody in the second tier. That could include the likes of JuJu Smith-Schuster, D.J. Chark or Christian Kirk, among others.

The receivers in this year’s draft stunned observers at the combine Thursday night with their speed in the 40-yard dash. Baylor’s Tyquan Thornton almost set the record at 4.28 seconds.

But with the 39th overall pick, the Bears probably are out of the running for the draft’s top receivers. Receivers have come at a premium in the past two drafts. In 2021, there were six receivers taken before the 39th pick. In 2020, there were eight. In past years, that number was much lower. As recently as 2019 there were only three.

Although this year’s draft doesn’t have a surefire stud receiver at the top such as Ja’Marr Chase, it does appear to have another strong group of pass catchers. The combine and upcoming pro days will continue to sway opinions on all these prospects, but in early March it feels likely that five or six receivers could be selected in the first round.

Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson, Arkansas’ Treylon Burks, USC’s Drake London, Alabama’s Jameson Williams and Ohio State’s Chris Olave appear likely to be first-round picks. Penn State’s Jahan Dotson could be the sixth receiver off the board and could be a potential first-round pick as well. If not, he’s still likely to be gone by the Bears’ 39th overall pick.

Those guys aside, three targets to keep an eye on at 39 overall are Georgia’s George Pickens, Purdue’s David Bell and Kentucky’s Wan’Dale Robinson.

George Pickens

School: Georgia

Height: 6-3

Weight: 195

40 time: 4.47 seconds

Vertical jump: 33 inches

The scouting report: Pickens is a lanky target who suffered an ACL tear during the 2021 offseason and wound up playing in only four games last year. As a freshman in 2019, he caught 49 passes for 727 yards and eight touchdowns. A 4.4 40 at his height is impressive. He has long arms and a wide catch radius.

He said it: “I watch Davante Adams a lot. I’m bigger than Davante Adams. That’s kind of the lane I want to go into because with the size I am, a guy who can move is almost unguardable.” – George Pickens

David Bell

School: Purdue

Height: 6-1

Weight: 212

40 time: 4.65 seconds

Vertical jump: 33 inches

The scouting report: There will be plenty of overreactions to Bell’s 40 time. Ignore them and go look up his game film. He had two 1,000-yard seasons and would’ve gone 3 for 3 if COVID-19 hadn’t shortened the 2020 Big Ten season. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein described Bell as “a crafty pitcher with a limited fastball but a variety of pitches to get hitters out.” Bell caught a ton of passes in college and maximized yards after the catch.

He said it: “I haven’t met with the Chicago Bears, but yeah, Justin Fields, that would be something that I would love to do. Watching him at Ohio State and seeing the way that he throws the ball and also his pocket presence.” – David Bell

Wan’Dale Robinson

School: Kentucky

Height: 5-8

Weight: 178

40 time: 4.44 seconds

Vertical jump: 34.5 inches

The scouting report: Robinson has a much different build than the other two receivers mentioned here. He is small and fast – about 3 inches shorter than Darnell Mooney. After transferring to Kentucky from Nebraska, Robinson caught 104 passes for 1,334 yards and seven touchdowns in his one season in Lexington. He’s somewhat reminiscent of Tarik Cohen in his size and speed.

He said it: “I feel like whenever it’s one-on-one, I don’t think anyone can tackle me. Like I said, I think I turn into a running back with the ball in my hands. I’m going to fight for extra yards and just try to break as many tackles as I can, try to get to the end zone.” – Wan’Dale Robinson