NFL Draft: Bears pick Offensive Lineman in First Round
By Benjy Lipsman in News on Apr 29, 2011 3:00PM
The NFL kicked off its three day draft Thursday night, with teams making their first round selections. Picking 29th, the Bears addressed their most glaring need by picking Gabe Carimi, an offensive lineman from University of Wisconsin.
A four-year starter with the Badgers, the 6 foot 7 inch, 314-pound tackle will likely shift from the left side to play right tackle for the Bears. But anywhere along the line is possible as the team tries to rebuild an aging, ineffective line. Carimi was a Bears target all along, but few thought he'd fall all the way to the Bears at 29.
In fact, Bears GM Jerry Angelo was among those who felt this way, which led to an epic draft blunder. Doing something he rarely does, Angelo worked a trade with the Baltimore Ravens to move up in the draft. The Bears GM had a deal in place to trade up to the 26th spot in order to snap up Carimi before the Chiefs drafted, in return for the Bears' 29th pick and their fourth round pick. The trade was never consummated because Angelo forgot to complete the paperwork with the league! Thinking they had traded down, the Ravens weren't ready to select and the Chiefs got their pick in ahead of Baltimore.
Said Angelo, "It was a glitch on our part and that glitch obviously was under my reign. It worked out. We got our player. I feel they got their player and we moved on." Fortunately for Angelo, Carimi remained on the board when their pick came along. The other teams also got the guys they were targeting, so no major damage was done. But the question remains, do the Bears still owe the Ravens their fourth rounder as agreed to in the draft? Baltimore has apparently contacted the commissioner over the botched trade, but likely has little official recourse. They may not answer calls from Angelo looking to trade for a while, however.
The NFL draft continues, with rounds two and three this evening and rounds four through seven on Saturday. We'll have a full draft recap on Monday.