‘Pre-drafting': What Senior Bowl revealed about OL, prospects

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Exactly what player, what position or even what side of the ball the Bears will address in the first two rounds of the 2013 draft (they dont currently have a third-rounder) wont truly be set until they send a card with a players name up to be read by Commissioner Roger Goodell beginning Thursday, April 25.

But several players have made impressions on veteran observers and if the draft breaks the Bears way, the possibilities at No. 20 of the first round becoming intriguing:

OT Eric Fisher, Central Michgan -- Fisher has wowed observers all week, coming in at 6-7, 305 pounds and performing well enough for NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock to remark that Fisher reminded him of 49ers Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Staley, also from CMU, but the more I see of him, I think hes a better skill set than Staley was coming out of college. Mayock would not be surprised to see Fisher go in the first 10 picks.

OT Lane Johnson, Oklahoma -- Fellow NFL Network analyst Charles Davis termed Johnson a little more of a potential pick but and projected that Johnson, like Fisher, could put on 20 more pounds of muscle and slip into the first round as well. Johnson has agilitya former quarterbackand was a Sooner teammate of current Bear OT Corey Brandon, and Johnson was a tight end as a sophomore when Brandon was a senior.

But the draft scenarios can and often do change based on what happens in free agency. If the Bears land a starter-grade OT, or if they decide theyre OK with Brandon, Gabe Carimi, Jonathan Scott and JMarcus Webb as a group, the focus could be on guard, tight end or a best-available defensive player. The fate of Henry Melton also projects to affect Bears draft targets:

DE Alex Okafor, Texas -- If coaches decide that Shea McClellins future is not confined to hand-on-the-ground defensive end, the need will be for a pass rusher. And no team can have too many of those. Okafor impressed Mayock specifically with his work against Fisher, whod handled Okafor early but the power-rushing ability netted Okafor 12.5 sacks in 2012.

DE Datone Jones, UCLA -- Jones had 19 tackles for loss last season and Davis alluded to Jones suddenness as well as his ability to work at different spots in sub-packages. Mayock added the variable of the juniors, who are not working in the bowl practices but who have first-round quality as pass rushers and outside linebackers.

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