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2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl: Five Players Bears Should Consider

The Reese’s Senior Bowl has always been an important event for potential NFL prospects to showcase their abilities to scouts, coaches and general managers for each of the 32 NFL teams.

This year, though, the event carried even more significance, especially since the annual NFL Scouting combine held in Indianapolis, Ind. changed its format — for this year at least — and will not host on-field workouts.

So every rep, every made play, every mistake by the players was magnified throughout the week in Mobile, Ala. at Hancock Whitney Stadium for the 2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl.

There were several individuals that raised their stock after the week-long event, but here are five players the Bears should strongly consider looking at for the 2021 NFL Draft.

Tylan Wallace WR Oklahoma State

There is a good chance the Bears could be without Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller going into next season. Robinson never got his contract extension, and Miller never lived up to his second-round draft position and also may have sealed his fate when he decided to punch Saints cornerback C.J. Gardner-Johnson.

So it would be wise if the Bears add a playmaker to the offense, and former Oklahoma State wide receiver Tylan Wallace could be that addition. And according to BearReport’s Zack Pearson, the Bears have already met with Wallace.

When it came to the one-on-one drills against the cornerbacks in practice, there weren’t many guys that could cover Wallace. He has a knack for creating separation from defenders and combines that with fluid route running, making it easy for any quarterback to get a completion.


Throughout his career at Oklahoma State, Wallace has achieved many accolades, including being named a Biletnikoff Award finalist in 2018. In that season alone, he had 1,491 receiving yards, 12 touchdowns and 66 first-down receptions, which led all Power Five conferences players.

The only negative about Wallace at the Senior Bowl was that he didn’t end up participating in the third and final day of practice and didn’t play in the game.

Wallace did tear his ACL in November of 2019, but looking at the production he has put up since then and how he dominated against the best seniors in the country earlier this week, it seems like he has recovered fairly well from the injury.

Robert Hainsey OL Notre Dame
Just looking at the Bears’ current roster, it’s evident Chicago is a fan of Notre Dame offensive players. Tight end Cole Kmet, center Sam Mustipher and right guard Alex Bars all played key roles for Matt Nagy’s offense during the final stretch of the 2020 NFL Season.

There was a fluctuation of players coming in and out of the starting lineup on the offensive line as guys went down due to injury, so a good idea would be to add a player that can play multiple positions: Robert Hainsey.

On any given drill throughout the three Senior Bowl practices, Hainsey could have been playing at four of the five positions on the O-line — everything but left tackle. Regardless of where he lined up, he showed that his 6-foot-4, 302-pound frame was capable of doing the job on each play.


During Saturday’s Senior Bowl game, Hainsey continued his overall solid play as he took snaps at right guard and center.

In his last season at Notre Dame, Hainsey was named a team captain, voted to the All-ACC Second Team and out of his 836 total snaps at right tackle, he didn’t commit a single penalty.

Keith Taylor Jr. CB Washington

This one may be a bit of a surprise, considering the Bears just drafted cornerback Jaylon Johnson from Utah with the 50th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. However, Johnson’s counterpart, Kyle Fuller, will be in the last year of his contract in 2021, and Keith Taylor Jr. would be an intriguing pickup.

The National team, coached by Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins, had some impressive wide receivers — Tylan Wallace, D’Wayne Eskridge and Demetric Felton — and one of the players who stood out in trying to cover these guys was Taylor.


At 6-foot-2, 191 pounds, Taylor used his height to his advantage, especially when he jammed opposing wide receivers, which often disrupted the timing of the pass with the quarterback. But Taylor also showed he is capable of turning his hips to stay with receivers downfield and finishing the play by locating the ball and making a play on it.

Even though he showed up in each of the three practices, he saved his best performance for Saturday’s game. Taylor finished the game with two total tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup that led to an interception.


Taylor finished his career at Washington with 19 games started, 91 tackles and 10 passes defensed.

Dillon Radunz OT North Dakota State

As everyone knows, Chicago’s offense had plenty of issues in 2020 and in 2019. But the play from the offensive tackles, Charles Leno Jr. and Bobby Massie, were and still are problems that need to be addressed.

Dillon Radunz from North Dakota State could be a realistic option that can help the Bears get an upgrade at this important position. With Radunz being from a smaller school and only having played one game this past season due to COVID-19, the Senior Bowl was crucial for his overall draft stock.

In less than a week, Radunz proved he is capable of succeeding against higher-level competition and that rust really wasn’t a factor for the 6-foot-5, 304-pound left tackle.


For his overall performance in each of the three practices, he was named the “Overall Practice Player-of-the-Week.”

Radunz moves well in space, plays with good balance and has some power to create running lanes and to hold up in pass protection. But an attribute of his game that should excite Bears fans is his willingness to not give up on a play.

Check out No. 75 in the yellow helmet and his effort to push his teammate into the end zone.


At North Dakota State, Radunz made 32 consecutive starts at left tackle and was named to the Associated Press All-America First Team in 2019.

Mac Jones QB Alabama

Does anybody really know who is going to be the starting quarterback for the Bears in 2021? It’s way too early to say, but there is no doubt Chicago needs to add someone new to the locker room. So why not add a Heisman trophy finalist and National Champion in Mac Jones.

Each of the quarterbacks had their moments throughout the week during the practices, but Jones was by far the most consistent of the entire group. His accuracy, decision making and competitiveness were on full display at Hancock Whitney Stadium.

Jones also had the throw-of-the-week with this completion to former Georgia tight end Tre’ McKitty.


Not surprisingly, Jones was also named the top QB on the American team.

If the Bears do decide to finally draft a young quarterback — something Ryan Pace hasn’t done since 2017 — then the organization should do its due diligence and give Jones a proper evaluation. He may not have the physical talent or athletic ability that teams often look for, but he is a proven winner and can get the most out of his playmakers.

In one season as the starter for the Alabama Crimson Tide, Jones threw for 4,500 yards 41 touchdowns and four interceptions.

Nicholas Moreano

Nicholas Moreano is a sports multimedia journalist and the Bears beat reporter for The Chicago Audible. He has a master's degree in Communication from DePaul University and obtained his bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Iowa.

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