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CHICAGO -- The Chicago Bears agreed to terms on four-year deals with fifth-round draft choice Jordan Mills, an offensive tackle from Louisiana Tech, and sixth-rounder Cornelius Washington, a defensive end out of Georgia, the team announced Tuesday.

They are the first members of the Bears' 2013 draft class to agree to terms on a contract.

The 6-foot-5, 316-pound Mills was a first-team All-WAC selection his senior season.

Mills is projected to begin his Bears career at right tackle but could end up at guard, a position he played his first season at Louisiana Tech. Mills is another addition to the Bears' revamped offensive line, which includes new starting left tackle Jermon Bushrod, right guard Matt Slauson and first-round pick Kyle Long.

Veterans J'Marcus Webb and Jonathan Scott are expected to battle for the starting right tackle spot in training camp, but Mills figures to be in excellent position to earn a place on the club's 53-man roster, if not more.


Washington primarily played outside linebacker in college but will start out as a pass-rushing defensive end in the NFL. Many draft analysts predicted Washington would be selected in the earlier rounds because of his pure athleticism, a trait the Bears value above others.

But Washington fell to the Bears in the sixth round likely due to his lack of consistent on-field production. Washington had just 0.5 sacks and 22 tackles his final year with the Bulldogs.

The Bears will conduct their annual rookie minicamp at Halas Hall next week.

Quarterback Jay Cutler is happy to see the Chicago Bears have made protecting their quarterback a priority after adding to the offensive line through free agency and with two draft picks.

The Bears, who gave up 49 sacks last season, which was fifth in the NFL, invested $17.7 million in guaranteed money in left tackle Jermon Bushrod and added guard Matt Slauson, who started 48 games the past four seasons for the New York Jets, during free agency. The Bears then picked Oregon guard Kyle Long with the 20th overall selection and Louisiana Tech offensive tackle Jordan Mills in the fifth round of the NFL draft.

"(The coaching staff is) going to make sure everyone knows their assignments and we are protected," Cutler said Monday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN Chicago 1000. "Bushrod is a huge addition and we drafted some guys and some of the guys we had last year have to step in and play well. It's definitely a point of emphasis. We're not going to let the quarterback get hit. We're not going to go into games unsure about protections. Everything starts there, and I think (new offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Aaron) Kromer is doing a great job with getting those guys up to speed with exactly how they want these things done."

With seven offensive linemen coming off the board before the Bears made their pick, Cutler said he wasn't sure what his team had planned with their first-round selection.

"I watched the first round and linemen were going off the board left and right so I wasn't too sure where we were going to go," Cutler said. "We have some holes defensively, we have Bushrod through free agency so I wasn't for sure about the pick. Like any quarterback I'm pretty selfish so anytime they pick somebody on offense it's going to make me smile."

It's one of the biggest mistakes a general manager or coach can make. The grand proclamations, you know the ones.

Our No. 1 goal is to beat Green Bay.

We get off the bus running the football.

We only want good character people.

I like that Phil Emery and Marc Trestman have not yet, and are not likely to in the future, utter any of the above three.

Read the entire column.

CHICAGO -- Chicago Bears fullback/tight end Evan Rodriguez has been cleared of any wrongdoing for his role in an incident last month in Miami Beach, Fla. that resulted in the player being arrested following a traffic accident, according to an official in the Miami-Dade County clerk's office.

Rodriguez, a passenger in one of the vehicles involved in the accident, allegedly interfered with the Miami Beach police investigation of the crime scene and got charged with resisting an officer without violence and disorderly intoxication.

The two charges were officially dropped on April 12.

“Evan is a fine young man and I had no doubt after meeting with him for the first time that he had committed no crime,” Rodriguez's attorney Ed O'Donnell said. “I'm glad the state of Florida agreed.”

Rodriguez spent a portion of his offseason training in South Florida with Bears' teammates Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery.

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Veteran free agent defensive lineman Israel Idonije visited the Tennessee Titans on Monday, a league source told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

Idonije finished second on the Chicago Bears last season with 7.5 sacks in 11 starts.

The 32-year-old versatile defensive lineman has been one of the Bears' most productive pass rushers since becoming a fixture in the starting lineup in 2010, opposite Pro Bowler Julius Peppers.

Idonije lost a little playing time last season to Corey Wootton but because of his versatility, Idonije was able to slide inside to defensive tackle when the Bears switched to their nickel defense.

A nine-year NFL veteran, Idonije has been a member of the Bears for nearly his entire career and is very active in the community. Idonije was one of three finalists for the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year Award in 2010.

The Bears re-signed Idonije to a one-year deal worth $2.5 million last offseason. While the Bears have expressed interest in Idonije returning, it's believed he would have to accept less money to remain in Chicago.

History with quarterbacks coach Matt Cavanaugh and head coach Marc Trestman, coupled with the perception the club needs a backup behind Jay Cutler, makes recently waived former Jets signal caller Tim Tebow a logical possibility in Chicago, but the Bears aren't interested, according to an NFL source.

The Jets waived Tebow on Monday after a one-year stint in New York.

"Unfortunately, things did not work out the way we all hoped," Jets coach Rex Ryan said in a statement.

His next opportunity won't come in Chicago, according to the source, who indicated there is no interest on the part of the Bears.

Having served as a quarterbacks consultant before becoming the head coach at Montreal and later Chicago, Trestman worked with Tebow to help the signal caller prepare for the 2010 draft. As quarterbacks coach of the Jets in 2012, Cavanaugh tutored Tebow last season as the quarterback passed for 39 yards on 6-of-8 completions and rushed for 102 yards.

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ESPNChicago.com's Jeff Dickerson takes your Bears draft questions during a live chat at 1 p.m. CT Monday. Click here to submit your questions.

NFC North teams added dozens of intriguing young players over the weekend. They filled glaring holes and added to already-established strengths. Some areas remain weak, of course, while other selections created new storylines we hadn't anticipated.

So here's my post-draft plan. We'll use this post to lay out the unfilled holes and new storylines and then circle back over the next days and weeks as needed. I'll also sprinkle in some interesting and/or offbeat stories that emerged from the draft but would have been buried if I had posted them over the weekend.

Issue: The Green Bay Packers continued signaling potential change at left tackle.
Analysis: Coach Mike McCarthy said in March that the team needed better play from its left tackle position, manned last season by Marshall Newhouse. Then the Packers went out and drafted Colorado's David Bakhtiari and Cornell's J.C. Tretter in the fourth round. Bakhtiari has played left and right tackle; Tretter played tackle as well but might project as a guard. Saturday, McCarthy left all options open at the position -- including moving right tackle Bryan Bulaga back to the position he played at Iowa. McCarthy also said he is "really counting" on Derek Sherrod, the Packers' top pick in 2011 who hasn't played since breaking his leg late that season, to compete for the job. Don Barclay, who started four games last season at right tackle (plus another two in the playoffs), is also in the mix. Suddenly, the Packers have six legitimate possibilities to compete for the left and right tackle spots if they want. Moving Bulaga isn't as easy as it sounds, and there is something to be said for leaving him at a position he has excelled at. But it's telling that the Packers are even considering it.

Issue: The Packers drafted 11 players, but none of them were safeties.
Analysis: General manager Ted Thompson said afterwards that he has faith in incumbents M.D. Jennings and Jerron McMillian, who will compete to play alongside Morgan Burnett. We'll see if the Packers feel compelled to kick the tires on a veteran. Among those available are Quintin Mikell, Kerry Rhodes and Gerald Sensabaugh. Historically, the Packers' approach has been to evaluate younger incumbents first before seeking veteran replacements elsewhere.

Issue: None of the Minnesota Vikings' nine draft choices play middle linebacker.
Analysis: We should note that the Vikings used a seventh-round pick on Penn State's Michael Mauti, who has been projected as a middle/inside linebacker by some. But Mauti is recovering from his third career ACL tear and can't be counted on to fill any sort of significant role. Internal candidates include Erin Henderson, the strong-side linebacker whom the Vikings have said could play inside if needed, and 2012 seventh-round pick Audie Cole. The elephant in the room is veteran Brian Urlacher, who was reported at one point this spring to have had conversations with Vikings officials. Urlacher isn't anything close to the profile of the player general manager Rick Spielman typically brings in, but this is an extenuating circumstance. Remember, the Vikings used their nickel defense on 58.9 percent of their snaps last season. Whomever plays middle linebacker for the Vikings could be off the field for two of every five snaps.

Issue: The Vikings used a fifth-round pick to make Jeff Locke the first punter drafted.
Analysis: In the past five years, four punters have been selected with a fifth-round pick or higher. All four became their team's primary punters in their rookie seasons. There is every reason to believe the Vikings plan for Locke to replace veteran Chris Kluwe, perhaps as soon as they get a look at him during their rookie minicamp this summer. I know that Spielman said Locke was brought in "to compete" for the job, but that competition will be short and one-sided. NFL teams don't use draft picks on specialists unless they are certain they want to make a change.

Issue: The Detroit Lions didn't draft an offensive tackle after the departure of both 2012 starters.
Analysis: Riley Reiff, the Lions' top draft choice in 2012, will start at left tackle. The Lions' right tackle could be Jason Fox or Corey Hilliard. That still leaves the Lions thin along the line, especially at right guard if rookie Larry Warford isn't ready to step in right away. Regardless, Lions general manager Martin Mayhew made clear the Lions need to add more depth. "We're really young there so we'll look at some veteran guys there I think over the next few weeks."

Issue: The Lions didn't draft a receiver until the sixth round (Virginia Tech's Corey Fuller), but they almost….
Analysis: According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Lions told Michigan's Denard Robinson that they planned to draft him with the No. 136 overall pick. Mayhew had spoken before the draft about Robinson's potential as a "slash" player from the backfield and/or slot receiver position. Robinson, however, was selected at No. 135 by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Eventually the Lions used the No. 166 overall pick to select Notre Dame's Theo Riddick, who is not as explosive as Robinson but is a good receiver out of the backfield in his own right. Ultimately, the Lions finished this draft thin at the traditional receiver position given the injury rehabilitations of Nate Burleson and Ryan Broyles.

Issue: The Chicago Bears did not draft a quarterback, seemingly leaving Josh McCown as the primary backup to Jay Cutler.
Analysis: The Bears figured to be a candidate to draft a quarterback in part because of coach Marc Trestman's expertise in developing them and in part to end the cycle of searching for a veteran backup each year. In the end, the Bears couldn't justify drafting one given their limited number of picks. (They started with five and through trades finished with six.) Said general manager Phil Emery: "Things would have to line up perfect to take a quarterback with five picks." McCown was relatively impressive during a two-start stint to end the 2011 season, but overall he has played in a total of six games over the past five seasons. I wouldn't call this the Bears' most pressing need, and the Bears signaled as much with their draft results.

Issue: The Bears feel better about their tight end situation than most draft pundits.
Analysis: Many draft analysts thought the Bears would draft Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert if they had a chance, but they passed him up Thursday night in favor of offensive lineman Kyle Long. Eifert went one pick later to the Cincinnati Bengals. It's true that Eifert would have been a luxury pick given the free-agent acquisition of tight end Martellus Bennett, but in the larger sense he would have been another weapon for quarterback Jay Cutler's make-or-break season.

Reading Mel Kiper Jr.'s grades the morning after the draft is like a holiday tradition. No matter how much we all understand intuitively that it's impossible to project future success, we still want to know what the man who has spent three decades evaluating draft classes thinks of our favorite team's efforts.

You'll need an Insider subscription to read the entire evaluation, but below is what I can sneak to you if you don't tell anyone:

Green Bay Packers

Mel's grade: B+

Kiper Jr. snippet: " I love what Green Bay got out of this draft, particularly at two spots -- defensive end and running back."

Seifert comment: The Packers really went after the running back position, drafting two backs -- Eddie Lacy and Johnathan Franklin -- that many teams pegged as feature backs on their own. Franklin also hedges concerns about Lacy's durability. The Packers can feel confident that at least one of them will make an impact on 2013. Defensive end Datone Jones is a different-looking player than what the Packers currently have at the position, and fits into the league's trend toward longer and leaner even for 3-4 ends.

Minnesota Vikings

Mel's grade: B

Kiper Jr. snippet: "Hey, they got starters, but they needed to add impact in this draft considering they dealt [Percy] Harvin and had a few pretty big needs."

Seifert comment: A good portion of evaluating this draft will come down to whether receiver Cordarrelle Patterson pans out. The Vikings gave up their chance to draft a starting-caliber middle linebacker, among other things, by trading back up into the first round to draft him. The Harvin trade was a big motivator. Kiper really thought the Vikings needed to get linebacker Manti Te'o; I just thought they needed someone at that position. Seventh-round draft pick Michael Mauti could be a factor if he can recover from a third torn ACL. Regardless, three first-round draft choices give the Vikings a good chance at a high-impact draft.

Detroit Lions

Mel's grade: B

Kiper Jr. snippet: "The pivot point for how we see this draft in three years will be [Ezekiel] Ansah. If he's great, then it looks good. If he's not, and Dee Milliner thrives with the Jets, fans will wonder."

Seifert comment: It would be disappointing if the Lions didn't get at least two functional starters out of their first three picks. It doesn't matter who is on the field for the first play of the game, but you would like to see Ansah get as many snaps as he can for development purposes. Cornerback Darius Slay should compete with Bill Bentley to start opposite Chris Houston and, at worst, play in nickel situations that comprise more than half of most team's defensive snaps. And third-round guard Larry Warford should push hard for the right guard spot.

Chicago Bears

Mel's grade: C+

Kiper Jr. snippet: "My issue with [Kyle] Long isn't that he's short on talent -- he's not. I just wasn't in love with the value."

Seifert comment: We'll never know if the Bears would have been better off trading down to grab Long later or waiting until the second round. Kiper Jr. didn't like the decision and thought tight end Tyler Eifert would have been a better choice. I'm stuck here, because we all know how much help the Bears' offensive line needs. Solidifying an interior spot, if that's what Long does, will help quarterback Jay Cutler in a measureable way. That's no different in the big picture than what Eifert could do. We all can agree, however, that the Bears upgraded their linebacker depth significantly with Jon Bostic and Khaseem Greene.

Related: For fun, here are Kiper Jr.s NFC North grades for the 2010, 2011 and 2012 drafts.

The NFL Draft came to a close on Saturday, but the Chicago Bears remained hard at work on the phones in the aftermath as they attemped to sign undrafted rookie free agents.

The Chicago Bears agreed to terms with 10 players for their 2013 class of undrafted free agents.

Here’s the list:

• RB Michael Ford, LSU
  
• WR Mark Harrison, Ruters
  
• CB Demontre Hurst, Oklahoma
  
• WR Josh Lenz, Iowa State
  
• C P.J. Lonergan, LSU
  
• DT Zach Minter, Montana State
  
• WR Marcus Rucker, Memphis
  
• DT Brent Russell, Georgia Southern
  
• P Tress Way, Oklahoma
  
• CB C.J. Wilson, North Carolina State
  

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- It’s impossible to predict if wide receiver Marquess Wilson will land on the Chicago Bears' final 53-man roster after the way his college career unraveled at Washington State.

Wilson quit the team last year and accused Cougars head coach Mike Leach of abuse, a story he eventually recanted.

But the damage was done.

Wilson’s decision to walk away from Washington State for the final three games of 2012 and the subsequent controversy with Leach overshadowed what been a productive college career. The wideout posted back-to-back seasons of 1,000-plus receiving yards in 2010 and 2011, catching a career-best 82 balls for 1,388 yards and 12 touchdowns his sophomore season.

Wilson made 52 catches for 813 yards and five touchdowns last year before he pulled the plug. He still left Washington State as the school’s all-time leader in receiving yards with 3,207, the ninth-most in Pac-12 history.

Wilson had 14 100-yard games.

From a pure talent standpoint, Wilson deserved to be drafted higher, but his stock plummeted for obvious reasons.

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» NFC draft analysis: East | West | North | South » AFC: East | West | North | South

How top-heavy was the 2013 draft in the NFC North? We welcomed more players in the first round (six) than in the second and third rounds combined (four), the result of two big trades.

With the 2013 affair basically in the books, let's take a closer look at its highs and lows. So much happened that we might not get to the relatively rare occurrence of two punters being drafted.

Onward:

BEST MOVE

The Green Bay Packers have gone 43 games without a 100-yard rusher, the longest active streak in the NFL by more than twice. Their running backs have combined for 12 rushing touchdowns over the past three seasons, the fewest in the NFL, and their average of 3.8 yards per rush over that span is tied for last in the league.

After years of subordinating this segment of their roster, the Packers reacted aggressively in 2013. They drafted not one but two of the top running backs available. Alabama's Eddie Lacy came in the second round (No. 61 overall), and UCLA's Johnathan Franklin came in the fourth round (No. 125 overall).

The relative flurry came at a time when the rest of the league appeared to have devalued the position. It was the first time in the history of the modern draft that zero running backs were selected in the first round. Perhaps the timing was coincidence, but if general manager Ted Thompson intended to capitalize on depressed prices to load up, it was a brilliant thought.

Thompson and the Packers had been trying to patch together the position ever since Ryan Grant broke his ankle in Week 1 of the 2010 season. It was time to find a more permanent solution, and Lacy and Franklin give them the personnel infusion they needed.

Runner-up: Like the Packers, the Chicago Bears finally attacked an area of need. They used two of their first three selections in what was originally a five-pick draft on high-end linebackers who actually project as starters rather than special-teams contributors. Second-rounder Jonathan Bostic could be the Bears' middle linebacker as early as this season, and fourth-rounder Khaseem Greene was one of the best defensive playmakers in college football last season.

RISKIEST MOVE

The Minnesota Vikings used four draft picks to move back into the first round and select Tennessee receiver Cordarrelle Patterson, taking on risk in two forms.

First, Patterson is a boom-or-bust prospect who spent only one year playing at the Division I level. He has the physical tools to be an exceptional player but has more development ahead of him than most first-round picks. Here's how ESPN analyst Todd McShay put it before the draft: "He scares me coming out of Tennessee, but I see the talent. … Patterson, with the ball in his hands, is just freakish, and even though he disappears for 30-40 plays [per game], he'll show up with one or two big plays a game that just kind of blow your mind and leave you wanting more."

At the very least, Patterson will need to be guided through the early part of his career. The Vikings hope to start him off as a kickoff returner and work him into their offense slowly. Expecting him to jump into the starting lineup alongside Greg Jennings for a full 70 plays per game is probably unrealistic.

Second, the trade left the Vikings unable to fill one of their most pressing needs: middle linebacker. Giving up picks in the second and third rounds left them watching as more than a half-dozen middle linebackers were drafted. The Vikings gave up the opportunity to fill that job on a long-term basis by jumping to draft a receiver who generated plenty of divergent viewpoints during the pre-draft evaluation process.

Runner-up: The Detroit Lions used the No. 5 overall pick on a pass-rusher who had 4.5 sacks in his college career. BYU defensive end Ezekiel Ansah has all the physical tools to be a dominant pass-rusher, but his learning curve is steep and his potential for immediate impact is at least worth questioning.

MOST SURPRISING MOVE

You would have been hard-pressed to find a mock draft that projected Oregon guard Kyle Long as a first-round pick. In a seven-round mock performed last week, Scouts Inc. suggested he would go No. 47 overall. And even that was based on Long's overwhelmingly positive athletic attributes rather than evaluation of his limited play at Oregon.

The Bears produced arguably the surprise of the draft by selecting Long at No. 20 overall, a time when even the most polished guards are rarely taken historically. But the Bears were blown away by Long's agility for his 6-foot-6 frame and were willing to overlook a one-season, four-start career at the Division I college level.

There is no doubt the Bears needed help on their offensive line, but you could have a spirited philosophical argument over the draft value of a raw, inexperienced guard. Even if the Bears are right about Long -- that his athleticism will make him a long-term starter -- it's fair to question whether they needed to take him in the first round. Did another team covet the draft's third-best guard enough to take him between picks 21 and 50, where the Bears were situated in the second round? One explanation: The Bears, with only five total picks in the draft at that point, thought it would be too difficult to trade up in the second round assuming Long got out of the first. I'm not going to say it was the wrong choice, but it sure was surprising.

FILE IT AWAY

The Lions bolstered their pass defense at the expense of some other positions of need. You can't have it all, and the Lions made some clear decisions.

On the plus side, they used three of their first four choices on Ansah, cornerback Darius Slay and defensive end Devin Taylor. Ansah (6-foot-5 with 35 1/8-inch arms) and Taylor (6-7 with 36-inch arms) will provide incredible length and a new look to the Lions' outside pass rush. Slay, meanwhile, has elite speed (4.36 seconds in the 40-yard dash).

That focus left the Lions less able to surround quarterback Matthew Stafford with additional weapons and protection. The Lions didn't draft an offensive tackle after the departure of both 2012 starters, and they didn't get around to selecting a receiver until grabbing Virginia Tech's Corey Fuller with the third pick of the sixth round (No. 171 overall).

(The Lions did draft guard Larry Warford in the third round.)

From a roster-balance perspective, it made sense for the Lions to focus on pass defense -- long a weakness -- rather than their passing offense. But the Lions still finished the draft with less depth at receiver and offensive tackle than they would have liked. Life is a trade-off, after all.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Here's a look at the Chicago Bears' seventh-round pick, receiver Marquess Wilson of Washington State.

Wilson led the Cougars in receiving last year with 52 catches for 813 yards and five touchdowns despite playing just nine games.

Strengths: Nearly 6-foot-3, Wilson presents matchup problems for defensive backs. Despite his height, Wilson shows surprisingly good agility, and the ability to keep defenders’ hands off him coming off the line. Given the fact he’ll likely be asked to play in the slot for the Bears, it’s encouraging that Wilson is considered a player who is willing to make tough catches over the middle. Over his first two seasons at Washington State, Wilson was highly productive, racking up 2,394 yards receiving on 137 catches.

Weaknesses: Character might be an issue. Suspended last Nov. for violating team rules, Wilson later left the team and accused the Washington State coaching staff of abuse. Wilson eventually recanted that story and explained it came as a result of him being angry with losing his starting job. Such a situation shows a lack of maturity. Interestingly, the university didn’t allow Wilson to return for its pro day. Physically, Wilson isn’t considered an imposing specimen. At the NFL Combine, Wilson benched 225 times just seven times. Wilson has also experienced concentration issues resulting in dropped passes. Wilson’s speed is considered just average.

By the numbers: Ran a 4.51-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. Averaged 18.3 yards per catch as a true freshman and 16.9 in his sophomore year. Set the school record for receptions (82) and receiving yards (1,388) in 2011, and led the Pac-12 in receiving yards per game (115.7).

What it means: The Bears needed a dynamic receiver capable of taking the tops off coverages from the slot, but it doesn’t appear that’s what the team acquired with the selection of Wilson. Wilson has shown he can produce against solid competition based on his back-to-back 1,000-plus yard seasons in 2010 and 2011. But his issues in 2012 are cause for concern. If Wilson takes to NFL coaching and matures, there’s a good chance he’ll earn a spot somewhere in the receiver rotation. Although he’s not considered especially explosive, Wilson should be able to find a niche.

Next: The Bears will round out the 2013 class by signing undrafted prospects to free-agent contracts late Saturday and will likely announce the signings on Sunday.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Keeping with the mantra of acquiring “dynamic” players, the Chicago Bears appeared to acquire another Saturday in the sixth round (188th overall) in Georgia defensive end Cornelius Washington, who was considered by some to be a late second-round talent.

“I’m a little bit disappointed, but the call came,” Washington said. “That’s what’s really important.”

The addition beefs up an already fairly explosive Bears pass rush. If Washington adjusts quickly to the NFL game, he’ll become an immediate contributor as a situational pass rusher, which just might signify the end of Israel Idonije's tenure with the Bears.

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LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Here is a look at the Chicago Bears' sixth-round choice (No. 188), defensive end Cornelius Washington out of the University of Georgia.

Washington is listed as an outside linebacker in draft guides. He made 76 tackles, 17.0 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks during his career at Georgia.

Strengths: Numerous outlets projected Washington to be drafted in the third or fourth round. Washington is another athletic hybrid-type player who boasts impressive measurables and athleticism. Flashed extreme speed at the NFL Combine. Described as a powerful player with a great build. Competed at the highest level in the SEC, arguably the top conference in the nation.

Weaknesses: Washington was never a full-time starter with the exception of his final year with the Bulldogs when he started 10 of 14 games. Even with playing time, Washington was kind of hit-or-miss in terms of on-field production. Had an off-the-field incident, a DUI arrest, in 2011. Injured hamstring at Pro Day.

By the numbers: Washington is 6-4, 264 pounds. He ran a 4.56 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. Second highest vertical leap (39-inch) and top bench press of all the linebackers at the NFL Combine. Washington tested with the linebackers.

What it means: If Washington can keep it together, he projects to be a valuable contributor on special teams at the onset of his NFL career. There is no shortage of ability here. Washington is Phil Emery’s prototypical “dynamic athlete”, but he needs to prove he can successfully adjust to life in the NFL. Plenty of players with Washington’s talent never make it because they lack the proper focus. It will be interesting to see how Washington competes at defensive end with reserves Turk McBride and Kyle Moore. The Bears haven’t ruled out re-signing Israel Idonije, but with another defensive end now in the mix, the odds of bringing back the veteran seem to be shrinking by the minute.

What’s next: The Bears hold one more pick in the seventh round (No. 236) as a result of their earlier trade with the Atlanta Falcons. The Bears could still stand to gain another cornerback or wide receiver.