Arizona RB Nick Wilson signs with Chicago Bears as undrafted free agent

A good landing spot

Another undrafted Arizona Wildcat has landed a chance to make an NFL roster, as Nick Wilson announced via Twitter that he has signed with the Chicago Bears.

Wilson entered the program as a consensus four-star prospect, ranked inside the top 250 from Fresno, California. He turned down programs like Arkansas, Cal, Tennessee, Washington, and Wisconsin for Arizona.

Wilson broke onto the scene as a true freshman and helped lead Arizona to the 2014 Fiesta Bowl after contributing 1,375 rushing yards on 236 carries, including 16 touchdowns. He set Arizona’s freshman rushing record, proving to be a star in the making.

Wilson picked up his sophomore season where he left off, but injuries started to slow him down and hurt his production. He ended up leaving multiple games early, and missed four games in 2015, rushing for 725 yards on 133 carries, including eight touchdowns.

A combination of ankle, foot, knee and shoulder injuries slowed him down once again during his junior campaign when he missed seven games, rushing for only 320 yards on 55 carries. He found the end zone three times.

During his senior season, Wilson bounced back, largely due to the trio of backs in the rotation. J.J. Taylor and Zach Green helped take the workload off and allowed Wilson to maximize his carries while limiting the damage to his body. He finished with 614 yards and six touchdowns.

Overall, Wilson is sprinkled through Arizona’s rushing record book. He is seventh all-time in rushing yards (3,034), his freshman campaign ranks him fifth in single season rushing yards (1,375) and tied fourth for single season rushing touchdowns (16). In total, he ranks third for career rushing touchdowns (33).

Wilson was an ultra-productive running back, when healthy. The NFL regime will serve him well, having an NFL medical staff and a limited role in the backfield where he doesn’t have to carry the ball 20-plus times.

The Bears have two workhorse backs already with Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen, but the depth chart seems to be wide open after that.

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