www.BearGear.info

LAKE FOREST, Ill. – The Bears on Saturday selected Kansas State cornerback Joshua Moore with the 141st overall pick in the fifth round of the draft.

The 5-11, 188-pounder started all 12 games each of the past two seasons. He registered a team-leading 76 tackles with 12 pass breakups, three interceptions and five tackles-for-loss in 2008, and 64 tackles, 11 pass breakups, two interceptions and 4½ tackles-for-loss in 2009.
“When you watched him on tape, he played very well,” said Bears defensive backs coach Jon Hoke.
“He has excellent cover sense, good zone instincts and good play speed. You saw him make plays on the ball. He played against teams like UCLA and played very well. You saw him play well on big stages, so that’s what kind of intrigues you about the guy. When he was playing big teams, he played extremely well.”

Moore played in all 13 games as a true freshman in 2006, recording 35 tackles, five pass breakups and one interception. He then missed the entire 2007 campaign after being declared academically ineligible.

Moore could have returned to Kansas State for a final season, but chose to enter the draft primarily because he has a four-month-old child to support.

“He’s a junior coming out, so he’s a young guy,” Hoke said. “There will be a transition period for him. But he definitely has a skill-set that we’re excited to work with.”

Hoke said that Moore possesses better man skills than some of the Bears’ other young cornerbacks.

“It gives you a little bit different guy from the standpoint we know what his strengths are,” Hoke said. “Man coverage is a tough thing sometimes to each [in the] transition from college to the NFL. He has experience in that, and it shows up on tape.”

Moore needs to work on his upper-body strength—he bench-pressed 225 pounds only twice at the NFL Combine—but he doesn’t shy away from contact.

“He will go tackle,” Hoke said. “He needs to work on upper-body strength, which he knows, to become even more physical. But he’s a willing tackler. You didn’t see him shy away from contact, and that was a good thing. As long as they’re willing, then they’ve got a chance.”

Moore intends to improve his strength with the Bears.

“I know I have to work hard because that was a big question on me coming into this,” he said. “I know I just have to come in and get in the weight room and work harder—way harder than I did before.”

During a conference call with reporters, Moore thanked coach Lovie Smith, the McCaskey family and the rest of the Bears organization for drafting him.

“I feel I can come in and contribute anywhere the coaches need me to, whether it’s defense or special teams,” Moore said. “Also, I think I can come in and contribute right away.”