If there was one pick in the 2026 NFL draft that had Chicago Bears fans upset, it was Zavion Thomas. It wasn’t just the fact that they were taking a wide receiver after already grabbing a center and tight end with their two previous picks. People had been hoping the team would invest more on defense. Yet what made it worse was that many experts felt Thomas was no more than a 6th or 7th round prospect at best. So, to take him in the 3rd round looked like a massive reach by Bears general manager Ryan Poles.
It was Velus Jones all over again. Poles took the former Tennessee receiver earlier than he should’ve in 2022. Now he’s doing it again. However, is this actually true? Based on what Sports Mockery insider Jeff Hughes heard from scout friends in the league, it wasn’t a reach at all. If the Bears hadn’t taken him when they did, another team likely would have a few picks later.
This was later confirmed by ESPN insider Field Yates. He told Waddle & Silvy that a person he trusts in the league called him, insisting that Thomas was ranked way too low on his top-150 prospect rankings.
Zavion Thomas went at the going rate.
Since 2010, there have been nine wide receivers who ran a sub-4.3 in the 40-yard dash who were drafted to the NFL. Three went in the 1st round. The majority of the rest went somewhere between the 2nd and 4th rounds. That is the general range where superfast receivers go. It isn’t like the Bears did anything that other teams haven’t done for years. Speed is a precious commodity in this league. You can’t teach it. That is why it is worth taking a player earlier in the draft, even if he’s more unproven.
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So why Thomas specifically? Head coach Ben Johnson described the reasoning. It wasn’t just about the speed. It was about the versatility.
“He’s got a unique skillset, just in terms of, he’s a 4.2 guy. Those guys don’t grow on trees. It’s easy to look at when it flashes up and everyone sees it, but yet when you turn on the tape, it’s more than just being able to run deep routes. The versatility that he showed – both at Mississippi and LSU – from the backfield, whether it’s running routes, or getting handoffs, and then the returning aspect of it. I think it all adds up.”
It isn’t a secret that Johnson loves to use his players like pieces on a chessboard. One must maneuver them around until you reach checkmate. Thomas has the kind of extensive skillset that allows him to create matchups in almost any situation. Go back and look at how Kalif Raymond impacted the Lions from 2022 to 2024. He was a solid third receiver, an occasional rushing threat, and a great returner. Thomas could do the same.
Besides, it’s not like the 3rd round has been good to the Bears.
That area of the draft has been a constant source of pain for this organization going back several years. In the past decade, only one player drafted in the 3rd round became a viable starter on the team. That was David Montgomery in 2019. Outside of that, it was a lot of awful.
- 2024: Kiran Amegadjie (OL, Yale, Pick 75)
- 2023: Zacch Pickens (DT, South Carolina, Pick 64)
- 2022: Velus Jones Jr. (WR, Tennessee, Pick 71)
- 2021: No 3rd round pick
- 2020: No 3rd round pick
- 2019: David Montgomery (RB, Iowa State, Pick 73)
- 2018: No 3rd round pick
- 2017: Adam Shaheen (TE, Ashland, Pick 45)
Truth be told, they’ve had some decent fortune at wide receiver in that range. They selected Bernard Berrian in 2004 and later grabbed Earl Bennett in 2008. Both ended up becoming solid contributors on some good teams. You could argue Zavion Thomas is more talented than both of them, and he has a far better head coach to guide his development. The pick may have been unexpected, but that doesn’t means it wasn’t justified. Chicago acted on what they felt was good information, and they were right.
