The Chicago Bears had two picks left in the draft. Both were in the 7th round. General manager Ryan Poles had a decision to make. He could hang onto the picks and grab a pair of players scouts and coaches liked, or he could package the picks to move up. As the NFL draft wound down, Poles was being pestered more and more to take a chance on a defensive tackle from Georgia Tech named Jordan Van Den Berg. Despite being on the older side at 24, he displayed an athletic profile among the best in the entire class. Poles acquiesced, packaging the picks to jump into the 6th round for him.
While fans were happy the team finally took a defensive lineman, they were underwhelmed by how long it took. What could a 6th rounder possibly do to help the team? Expecting such a pick to have any discernible impact felt like wishful thinking. However, buzz from Halas Hall has indicated Van Den Berg is anything but typical. He’s been bullying offensive linemen in 1-on-1 drills so often that it’s earned him snaps with the starting defense. This can’t be real, can it?
Jordan Van Den Berg even has teammates excited.
Neville Gallimore has played defensive tackle for six years in the NFL. In that time, he’s shared a line with some pretty good players. Among them are Osa Odighizuwa in Dallas, Braden Fiske in Los Angeles, and, of course, DeForest Buckner in Indianapolis. Based on early impressions, Van Den Berg is very much the real thing.
“I think he’s gonna be a hell of a football player. I think he’s growing. His understanding of the game is improving every day. I just love his competitiveness. Great guy for the locker room. He does his job at a high level and, again, I think he’s only going to get better as he continues to be a part of the system.”
Gallimore isn’t alone in that thinking. Grady Jarrett, a two-time Pro Bowler himself, confirmed that the rookie is already playing far beyond his draft slot.
🔥 Subscribe to the Untold Chicago YouTube channel to hear Chicago legends tell stories you’ve never seen in headlines — real moments, real experiences, straight from the athletes themselves.
“(He’s) a guy that’s just super athletic, man. Super bright future, but you know, still learning a lot. He’s hungry to learn, hungry to work. He’s got the ingredients to really just always continue to just develop and got the right mindset. So we’re excited to have him, and I think he’ll be a big addition to the room and somebody who can continue to help us – hopefully help us this year as we get down the road.”
Did the Bears get lucky?
It’s too early to know for sure. Many times, players who practice great can’t seem to carry that over into games. Van Den Berg has yet to play in one. His first opportunity will come on August 15th in the preseason opener against Cleveland. If he can turn that dominance in drills into some productive play, the Bears may have no choice but to give him actual snaps with the starting defense when things get serious in September. One thing is certain: this could either be one of the biggest scouting victories in recent memory or a stroke of incredible good fortune. Or both.
You have to remember what Jordan Van Den Berg went through to get here. He came from South Africa to play football. He went to high school in Georgia and was the state’s Defensive Player of the Year as a senior. Even so, he received no scholarship offers and walked on at Iowa Western Junior College. His freshman year was ruined by COVID. The next season, he played so well that he earned an offer from Penn State. Unfortunately, he had few opportunities to play over three years there, forcing him to consider transferring.
That is how he landed with Georgia Tech, became a starter, and played well enough to get himself drafted.
Overcoming expectations has become a theme of his life.
He wasn’t an American, so his chances of playing major college football were limited. He made his name at junior college. There is no way he’d do the same at the Division I level. Now it’s that he’s a 6th round pick. Players drafted that late never pan out. Van Den Berg has heard it all before. He already knows the expectations don’t matter. What matters is what he does with the opportunities he is given. If he brings the intensity and work ethic, the talent will take care of the rest.
If he already has the attention of two proven veterans on his own team, that is a great sign. Teammates are always the first to notice. If they’re complimentary beyond the usual platitudes, you know you have something. Van Den Berg has the tools to become what the Bears have been missing for way too long. That is an explosive interior pass rusher who can unsettle quarterbacks up the middle.
