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If one was to describe Chicago Bears GM Ryan Pace‘s first five picks of his first-ever draft as a general manager, one might say that it was safe and simple.
He didn’t overthink any of the picks or take risks on red-flag players (which he could’ve easily done with Randy Gregory). Instead, it appeared he was just taking the best available player with a slight emphasis on his team needs — though, that was pretty easy to do considering how many there were. Regardless, Pace didn’t try to be some amazing clairvoyant and take a shot on some random guy nobody had heard of (e.g. Shea McClellin).
The new Bears’ GM did take one risk, however, but waited until the sixth round (and presumably the Bears’ last pick of the 2015 NFL Draft if they don’t trade for a seventh-rounder).
With pick No. 183, the Bears selected offensive lineman Tayo Fabuluje out of TCU. And there are a couple of reasons why Fabuluje is a concerning player, despite his upside.
The first reason why is because of his college experience. Fabuluje transferred back and forth from TCU to BYU and back to TCU before making his true mark as a player. Many find this concerning, and questioned his character and motives once knowing this information.
The second reason why is because of his weight. Before being an honorable mention for the All-Big 12 team, Fabuluje, in his collegiate career, went from a 260-pound defensive end to a 317-pound offensive tackle to out of football for a year and nearly 400 pounds. Then, of course, last year happened and he got back down to around the 353 pounds that he is today.
All of this sounds disconcerting to any Bears fans for sure. That is, if you don’t know the context.
You see, Fabuluje has had a very difficult life up until about a couple of hours ago when he officially became an NFL player (not saying that’s not hard, but it will make things better — just keep reading).
When the big man was just a wee boy, at the age of 5, his father was deported to Nigeria, and he hasn’t seen him since then. Being raised by just his mother — who was incarcerated just a couple of years ago — was no easy life for him and his family.
Long story short, his move from TCU to BYU was because of friends he had made who became his family. However, he didn’t fit in with the mormon culture at BYU and needed to go back to TCU. While back at the home of the Horned Frogs, his mother — as previously mentioned — was sent to jail, and his older sister had to come live with him at his college apartment.
This forced Fabuluje to get three jobs to afford to provide for both of them and keep them in a home with food and to keep paying for college for he and his sister. That’s when Fabuluje went from 317 pounds to nearly 400. All of that stress caused him to lose focus from his body, and without being on the football team, it certainly took a toll.
However, going into his senior year, he was motivated to get back on the team at TCU — which he credits to all of the “good people around me that kept me motivated, kept wise words in my ears, and it got me through,” he said in an interview with SB Nation. All of that helped him to drop some of the weight he had gained, and continues to work on getting into better shape still.
All of that brings us to today, where the Bears took a chance on him in the sixth round and changed his life forever.
Truth is, Fabuluje is an incredibly gifted athlete at 6-foot-6, 353 pounds, and with the right exercise and diet plan, as well as the right coaching and motivation, he could become an absolute beast of an offensive lineman, instead of the guy working three jobs to make ends meet.
So here’s to hoping Fabuluje understands how blessed he is to be in this position given everything he’s gone through in the past 4-5 years. And at the same time, perhaps the Bears found a real gem taking a smart risk late in the draft.
Brian Neal is a contributor for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @brianneal23.
