College Quarterbacks Love Bears Rookie Wide Receivers

After the Bears landed Jay Cutler in early April, the focus of many fans and media alike shifted to the receiving corps. Devin Hester, Rashied Davis and Earl Bennett will need some help, and no one can doubt that. Since then, the Bears have seen Torry Holt sign with the Jags, not traded for Anquan Boldin -- probably because they don't have enough to offer -- and drafted three second-day wide receivers.

Over the course of the past week, the Chicago Tribune has conducted interviews with the three respective quarterbacks of the three drafted wideouts. As can be expected, those interviews unearthed rave reviews.

According to Heisman trophy-winning Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford, Bears third-round pick Juaquin Iglesias has been nationally overlooked and will make a smooth transition to the NFL. He's also got a big-game knack, according to Bradford.

"I also think you have to look at the fact that he caught two touchdown passes in our Big 12 Championship game. He wasn't fazed by the big games. In fact, he played well in those circumstances. That means a lot to a championship team.''

Billy Malone, the man who quarterbacked the Bears sixth-round pick at Abilene Christian, owes more than a quarter of his career passing yards to Johnny Knox. According to Malone, Knox possesses all-world speed and has enough strength to complement the speed at the next level.

"Everybody talks about his speed, but what people don't know is Johnny has such strong hands,'' Malone said. "He's just got that grown man upper-body strength.

"I guess at the next level, they talk about if receivers can get off of press coverage or whatever. With his strength and speed, he should have no problem. He's going to do well for the Bears."

In the seventh round, the Bears selected Derek Kinder from Pittsburgh. Kinder was really blossoming as a go-to receiver before tearing his ACL before his senior season. When he finally got his senior year last season, he wasn't fully recovered until the end of the season. Bill Stull, Kinder's quarterback at Pitt, notes how much stronger Kinder came away from the injury.

"The one thing I think Derek learned from his experience was mental toughness,'' Stull said. "Just going through a major adversity ... that's something he never had to deal with here before."

Stull also noted that Kinder showed his speed was back when running the 40 in the "4.4s" during Pittsburgh's Pro Day.

Now, let's be real for a second. Obviously, the quarterbacks who got to throw to eventual NFL draft picks in college are going to fall over themselves praising guys who probably made them look good more often than not. They likely even have good friendships with the respective receivers. Still, you can take some of the statements and logically read something from them.

Bradford spoke about Iglesias' ability to learn a tough system quickly, make difficult catches and step up on the big stage. It's true, Iglesias did prove himself on college football's biggest stages. Mental toughness and great hands are things the Bears need -- and many scouts pointed out they believed Iglesias to be a steal late in the third round.

As far as with Kinder and Knox, the prospects of one of the two sticking with the Bears in the future sounds realistic. Knox is a guy who has loads of talent but hasn't showcased it against top-level competition. Kinder was growing into a star in the Big East -- 57 catches for 847 yards and 6 touchdowns his junior year -- before a season-ending injury. He's now a full season removed from it and has shown the drive and tenacity one needs to survive in the NFL.

While it would still be nice if the Bears still found a way to swing a deal for Boldin, the prospects of developing the young receiving corps under Cutler -- and teaming them them with the ball-catching skills of Greg Olsen and Matt Forte -- seems a bit more enticing when looking toward the future than coughing up tons of money and draft picks.