Chicago Bears Select Harvey Unga in the Supplemental Draft

The Chicago Bears selected former BYU running back Harvey Unga today in the seventh round of the NFL’s supplemental draft. That’s right, the seventh round. There were said to have been many teams interested in his services going into today’s draft, as indicated by the 24 franchises present at his recent workout. For Unga, however, this has to rank as a disappointment. His late round slide also has some impact on a few players in dynasty leagues.

Harvey Unga, RB CHI
Unga will have a very difficult time making the Bears roster. It’s likely that teams were scared away by his questionable motivation more than his breaking BYU’s honor code for alleged premarital relations. His late round selection also makes it apparent many franchises saw him as more of a fullback than a tailback. With the Bears only investing a future seventh round pick, there’s a very good chance he’ll be headed for the practice squad and not the full-time roster.

Matt Forte and Chester Taylor, RBs CHI
There’s very little chance that Unga challenges either of these two any time soon. In fact, he’s likely going to be best served as a lead blocker for them. If anything, it may actually help the value of Forte, who averaged 4.5 yards per carry from the I-formation, as opposed to less than three in one back sets last season.

Kahlil Bell and Garrett Wolfe, RBs CHI
If Unga learns the complicated offense quickly, he could challenge these two for some playing time and attempt to steal the No. 3 running back position. That’s a really big “if,” though. Odds are that Bell and Wolfe are both already on your league’s waiver wire. If you own one of them, this is no reason to cut them. The chance of Unga unseating either this close to the preseason is very slim.

Kenneth Darby and Chris Ogbonnaya, RBs STL
The big winners from the supplemental draft may actually be Kenneth Darby and Chris Ogbonnaya. The Rams were said to be very interested in Unga, but were apparently scared off by his ankle injury and past history. It looks like Darby and Ogbonnaya will battle it out to be Steven Jackson’s handcuff.

There was some hope brewing in fantasy leagues about Unga. In fact, many dynasty league owners had picked him up this week hoping he’d be selected by a team to realistically challenge for some playing time at running back. After being taken in the seventh round by a Bears team, his value has diminished quickly. He’s best served to stay on the waiver wires in dynasty leagues.