2023 NFL Draft: Why Bears selected LB Noah Sewell in Round 5
What Bears are getting in fifth-round pick LB Noah Sewell originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Noah Sewell watches film of Junior Seau and Ray Lewis. The Oregon linebacker, who the Bears selected with the 14th pick in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, models his hard-hitting, physical playstyle after the two Hall of Fame linebackers.
The Bears revamped their linebacking corps this offseason with the addition of Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards. Edmunds will play the MIKE while Edwards mans the WILL. Jack Sanborn is expected to be the starting SAM.
Sewell arrives as much-needed depth behind those three starting backers.
He has great size and speed for a downhill, throwback linebacker. He has rare explosiveness for a 6-foot-1, 250-pound linebacker, allowing him to play aggressively between the tackles and stop ball carriers in their tracks. Sewell is a high-IQ football player with great instincts and a nose for the football. Add in that he was a five-star recruit coming out of high school, and he has H.I.T.S Bear written all over him.
He also has a skill that's rarely seen among interior linebackers.
"He’s a good blitzer," Bears scout Reese Hicks said of Sewell. "Really had a good arsenal of moves. Something that I think may not be as common among linebackers; usually, you see that around edge players more than interior linebackers, but he’s got a good arsenal, rushes hard to the ball, good close. So, that adds an element I think we can utilize."
RELATED: Why Bears bet on Dexter, Pickens on Day 2 of draft
Sewell likely will have a limited impact on the 2023 Bears. He'll provide depth and likely give them reps on special teams.
But his size and speed make him an intriguing developmental linebacker who could grow into a starting role down the line.
