The Chicago Bears aren’t getting the bulk of the attention this year leading up to the NFL draft. That isn’t a big surprise. For the first time since 2022, they won’t hold the #1 pick in the draft. That honor goes to the Tennessee Titans. Combine this with the fact that they’re not hunting for quarterback help, and it’s easy to see why the Bears are viewed as a boring topic. However, that doesn’t mean they’re in a bad position, far from it. In fact, it appears other teams are enviable of their spot.
Why? ESPN draft insider Matt Miller got to the bottom of it during his fact-finding mission ahead of the scouting combine later this week. It stems from the nature of this incoming class of prospects. Most scouts agree there is only a small handful of legitimate star-caliber players at the top of this draft. After that, it’s a meat-and-potatoes group made up of lots of guys capable of starting in the NFL. There isn’t a huge gap between those taken in the middle of the 1st round and the middle of the 2nd. This suits the Bears perfectly.
Though the class appears to lack high-end, can’t-miss prospects seen as future stars — such as Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr. last year — it has fewer players ranked high based purely on potential. As an AFC East area scout put it: “Player No. 15 on your board might have the same grade as No. 50.”
That’s great for teams selecting in the middle of the first round or later. It also benefits teams with three or more picks in the first two rounds, such as the Chicago Bears, who have three selections between pick Nos. 10 and 41, and the Buffalo Bills, with three selections between Nos. 30 and 62.
The Chicago Bears are in a great spot to land instant contributors.
GM Ryan Poles hasn’t been perfect, but it’s clear his foreshadowing for the past two drafts was dead on. He predicted the 2024 draft would be considerably stronger at quarterback than 2023, which is why he took the risk of trading the #1 pick to Carolina that year. He also likely had a good idea of what the 2025 class would look like and wanted a pick in that one as well. It is incredible how well-structured that trade ended up being. It not only may have landed a franchise quarterback, but there’s a chance it secures the Chicago Bears another high-end starter. As always, it comes down to the evaluations. Poles has done pretty well in the 1st and 2nd rounds thus far during his tenure. This could be his chance to put the team over the hump.
