The Chicago Bears are meeting with a quarterback
The Chicago Bears were expected to look at quarterback options in the 2023 NFL Draft. After all, holding the number one pick this offseason, the Bears would have done themselves a disservice not seeing if any of the elite quarterbacks in this year’s draft were a generational talent over Justin Fields. They will continue to search for other options in later rounds of the draft after trading the top pick to the Carolina Panthers.
According to Jason Lieser with the Chicago Sun-Times, head coach Matt Eberflus said Tuesday the Bears analyzed quarterback prospects but “made a good decision” to build around Justin Fields this offseason.
Eberflus says the team, and him specifically, jumped right on pre-draft QB evaluations. He says they thoroughly analyzed the top QBs in the draft and ultimately is confident “we made a good decision” to commit to Justin Fields.
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) March 28, 2023
The Bears could still take a quarterback past the first round. They signed P.J. Walker as their backup for the 2023 season. But as the San Francisco 49ers showed last season, a contending team can’t have enough stable quarterbacks in the locker room. According to Tom Pelissero with the NFL Network, the Bears will have a private visit with Purdue quarterback Aidan O’Connell.
Purdue QB Aidan O’Connell has a private workout today with the #Cowboys, per source.
O’Connell also has private visits and workouts set up with the #Jets, #Raiders, #Saints, #Bengals, #Colts and #Bears, and has Zoomed with 10 other teams. Busy month for the Shrine Bowl standout.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 28, 2023
Who is Aidan O’Connell?
The mustached signal caller was a two-year starter for Purdue. O’Connell completed 826 passes on 1,238 attempts for 9,219 yards. The six-foot-three, 210-pound quarterback threw 65 touchdown passes to 30 interceptions in his four-year college career. His rushing total for Purdue was -274 yards, which might not make him a Chicago Bears scheme fit. However, O’Connell is an Illinois native, so that might be what interested general manager Ryan Poles.
According to Lance Zierlein with the NFL, O’Connell has backup potential in a pro-style offense in the NFL:
“O’Connell’s 2021 tape is better than what we saw from him in 2022, but there were still flashes last season. He’s a pocket passer who can throw with solid accuracy over the first two levels but struggles with trajectory and rhythm on deep targets. O’Connell has below-average mobility inside and outside the pocket. He needs to keep his progressions on schedule and his throws on time to make up for average arm strength. He had to carry a heavy percentage of the offense on his back at Purdue and could benefit from an offense that allows him to manage games. O’Connell has backup potential and his upside is slightly above average.”
Pro Football Focus ranks O’Connell as the seventh-best quarterback in the 2023 draft class and the 132nd-best player (fourth round) in the draft.
Here are highlights of O’Connell during his time at Purdue:
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