Getty Auburn pass rusher Derick Hall had an official visit with the Chicago Bears on April 19.
The Chicago Bears are squeezing in a final visit with one of the more intriguing pass rushers in the 2023 NFL draft class ahead of next week’s main event.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Bears hosted Auburn defensive end Derick Hall for a top 30 visit on April 19’s final day for official pre-draft meetings. He has been projected to go somewhere between the first and third rounds and is at least the fourth pass rusher from the 2023 class to have taken an in-person visit to Chicago.
Hall possesses ideal length (83-inch wingspan) and power off the edge to be a natural fit for Matt Eberflus’ 4-3 defensive scheme. Over his final two seasons with the Tigers, the 6-foot-3, 256-pound pass rusher notched 16 sacks and 24.5 tackles for loss and was able to use his strength and athleticism to bring a higher level of physicality to their run defense, even though he will need to develop that area of his game further in the NFL.
“He’s tight-limbed and he’s more segmented than you want, but he’s tougher than s*** and he’s going to be a great fit in a locker room,” an AFC area scout told NFL Network’s Lance Zierlein, via Zierlein’s pre-draft profile of Hall.
The Bears could potentially look to target Hall anywhere between their first pick in the second round (No. 53 overall) to their first pick in the third round (No. 64 overall). ESPN’s Mel Kiper and The Athletic’s Dane Brugler also both projected Hall to land in Chicago in their most recent mock drafts with Kiper penciling him in at the 61st pick and Brugler predicting the Bears to take him with the 64th pick.
Derick Hall Could Become Day 2 Steal for Chicago
The Bears could realistically target a new pass rusher as soon as their first pick at No. 9 overall given how badly they need more talent off the edge, but landing Hall on Day 2 would be an absolute steal for the Bears after they generated just 20 sacks last season.
Despite Hall having good speed (an official 4.55-second clocking his 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine), he is a power rusher first who explodes off the line and uses his overwhelming strength to win at the point of attack. His dense frame makes him a difficult matchup for even some of his bigger-bodied matchups, such as tight ends, and his elite-caliber length allows him to set the edge on his terms, either muscling his opponent out of position or using his strong hands to shed the block and toss him aside.
Here’s what Zierlein wrote about Hall in his pre-draft profile for NFL.com:
Explosive and long, Hall players with a rugged demeanor and puts his traits to work as an assertive power rusher capable of putting offensive tackles in reverse. He tends to lack consistency when forced to read and react in the run game and his rush approach is predictable with charges down the fairway. However, his jolting initial contact can help him gain positioning and he’s excellent at transitioning from bulldozer to pocket vulture as a sack artist. He is average against the run, exploitable in coverage and in need of a more diversified rush approach, but a true power rush usually translate in the NFL.
Bears Hosted Multiple EDGEs for Top 30 Visits
The Bears have taken an interest in several NFL-ready pass rushers over the past month of the pre-draft process. Beyond Hall, they have also hosted top 30 visits with Georgia’s Nolan Smith and Texas Tech’s Tyree Wilson — both of whom could be off the board in the first half of the opening round — as well as Pittsburgh’s Deslin Alexandre.
Here’s a running list of prospects reported to have taken in-person visits with the Bears, including local prospects who do not count against Chicago’s top-30-visits total:
Deslin Alexandre, DE, Pittsburgh: (Per Ryan Fowler of The Draft Network)
Derick Hall, DE, Auburn: (Per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network)
Nolan Smith, DE, Georgia: (Per Josh Schrock of NBC Sports Chicago)
Tyree Wilson, DE, Texas Tech: (Per Schrock)
Adetomiwa Adebawore, IDL, Northwestern: (Per Fowler)
Jalen Carter, IDL, Georgia: (Per Ryan Poles)
Gervon Dexter Sr., IDL, Florida: (Per Aaron Wilson of KPRC2)
Ricky Stromberg, OC, Arkansas: (Per Bleav Network)
Jaelyn Duncan, OT, Maryland: (Per Justin Melo of The Draft Network)
Paris Johnson Jr., OT, Ohio State: (Per Schrock)
Broderick Jones, OT, Georgia: (Per Schrock)
Dawand Jones, OT, Ohio State: (Per Fowler)
Ilm Manning, OT, Hawaii: (Per Melo)
Jordan McFadden, OT, Clemson: (Per Ryan Roberts of SINow)
Darnell Wright, OT, Tennessee: (Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network)
Xazavian Valladay, RB, Arizona State: (Per Bears insider Daniel Greenberg)
Brandon Joseph, SAF, Notre Dame: (Per Melo)
Payne Durham, TE, Purdue: (Per Melo)
Jayden Reed, WR, Michigan State: (Per Greenberg)
Jonathan Mingo, WR, Ole Miss: (Per Jon Sokoloff of WCBI News)
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State: (Per Dan Hope of Eleven Warriors)
Dontayvion Wicks, WR, Virginia: (Per Jacquie Franciulli of 247 Sports)
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