Chicago Bears: Cody Whitehair is a flat out stud

Chicago Bears offensive lineman Cody Whitehair, a second round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, is a flat out stud. We examine his rookie impact…

The Chicago Bears had — in my opinion — about as good of a draft as you can possibly have, and Cody Whitehair was a huge part of that.

I wasn’t overly thrilled about the Leonard Floyd pick based on John Fox’s style and history defensively, but I get it. The Bears needed a top pass rusher, and they took a guy who has possibly the highest ceiling in that regard in this class. Even though Floyd is more of a project than a finished product at this point, I think the upside justified the means by which they acquired him, and they followed that selection up with some ‘safe’ but absolutely excellent choices.

Jonathan Bullard was a pick that I absolutely loved for Chicago, but my favorite pick in this draft for them is Cody Whitehair out of Kansas State.

Whitehair was among the first players I was tasked with scouting this offseason, and I’ve made the comment multiple times that he’s arguably the best. The former left tackle at Kansas State has been pegged as a guard in the pros, and that could very well be the case, but I wouldn’t make it an absolute necessity.

This is a player who was absolutely dominant at left tackle for K-State, and I would invite you to open up another tab and check out my full scouting report here.

If you aren’t convinced after watching a few games and some of those clips posted in that report that Whitehair is capable of being a left tackle, I don’t know what it would take to convince you. He doesn’t have elite arm length or strength, but he moves incredibly well for a big man which is probably the reason people think he’s going to be an ideal fit moving inside at the next level.

His fit with the Bears, specifically, excites me because I see him as a player that can start and thrive immediately. Dave Magazu is a very good offensive line coach, one who was with the Denver Broncos from 2011-2014. He helped develop prospects like Zane Beadles and Orlando Franklin — college tackles — into highly paid offensive guards in this league. Whitehair is more athletic than either Beadles or Franklin, and I think his ceiling is even higher.

When you compare Whitehair to tackles coming out in recent draft classes that have made the transition to guard, the player that comes to mind is former LSU tackle La’El Collins, who thrived in his role as left guard of the Dallas Cowboys last season.\

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Collins, like Whitehair, made his mark in college as a left tackle, and he was a very good one. I think in the NFL, Collins could easily play tackle if needed because of his great feet. The same is true for Whitehair. However, his quickness and agility might be best utilized inside, and it wouldn’t be the first time the Bears have seen a player make that transition.

Kyle Long, a former defensive player, made the transition to the NFL as this freak athlete who started 10/12 games at Oregon on the offensive line. Scouts figured he could also play either tackle or guard in the NFL, and as it turns out, Long is one of the best offensive guards in the game.

While the Bears have struggled over the years to find the right formula in protecting Jay Cutler to maximize his potential, I think Whitehair could finally provide the final piece they’ve been needing. Some other things need to go their way, like the development of center Hroniss Grasu and finding stability at left tackle, but this could be the best offensive line they have had in the last decade and the additions of Whitehair and free agent Bobbie Massie are big reasons why.

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