Amegadjie on being drafted by Bears: “Everything I wanted since I was a little kid” |
There is nothing like a Chicago Bears fan getting drafted by the Bears. With the No. 75 overall pick in the NFL Draft, Chicago selected offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie from Yale.
A Chicagoland native, Amegadjie was at a loss for words realizing his dream had come true. “I really have no words. I grew up a Bears fan … This is everything I wanted since I was a little kid. So, I can’t even put it into words. This is amazing,” Amegadjie said. “My real dream is starting now. The real work is starting now, and I get to stay home. I get to do with the team that I’ve loved ever since I was six years old, and I’m really excited.” Chicago acquired numerous offensive linemen in free agency. However, all their acquisitions still arguably made the left tackle position the weakest spot on the line, which is quite a concern given that they just drafted their quarterback of the future, Caleb Williams. This pick could serve as a potential fix to that issue or, at the very least, create some competition in training camp. Wherever Amegadjie plays on the line, he says he will go out and make plays. “I’m a tackle. I prefer tackle,” Amegadjie said. “But, I’ll play anywhere. I’m a football player. You can put me wherever you want on the field. I’ll go make a play.” There were some concerns about his injury history. While he was able to play a total of 20 games in 2021 and 2022, Amegadjie was limited to four games this past season after a season-ending quad injury required surgery. Nonetheless, this is not something that he sees as a limitation going into his pro career. “I feel really good right now. I’m ready to get to work and obviously, it was pretty bad timing of the injury,” Amegadjie said. “But God works in mysterious ways, and it’s the path I had to take to get to where I am today. So, I’m not going to let it deter me moving forward.” Amegadjie also serves as an example of the benefits of playing multiple sports in high school. While many young athletes are opting to participate in one sport, Amegadjie benefited from playing basketball in high school because of the transferable skills he developed playing basketball. “I started playing basketball in fifth grade. I played through my sophomore year,” Amegdajie said. “I just think some of the movements translate even though they’re not the exact same - the foot quickness, agility, jumping, change of direction. You need all that when you play basketball. So, I think it really helped me to develop the skills that I have now.” There are still numerous aspects of his game. Amegadjie will need to improve to potentially become a starter for the Bears, though. Still, the Hinsdale native feels his ceiling is incredibly high and working with offensive line coach Chris Morgan should greatly help with his development. “I’m not a finished product, and I’ll never be ashamed of that. So, every day is a work. It’s a thing. It’s a work ethic thing. It’s about getting better and my ceiling is extremely high,” Amegadjie said. “I believe I have the highest ceiling in this entire draft class of any player. So, for me it’s about what I can do every single day to achieve that and me and Coach Morgan talked about that in our meeting and that’s exactly what I plan on attacking from day one.”
