Chicago Bears fans have already become aware of Jordan Van Den Berg. Back in April, only draft nerds were even aware he existed. They knew him as a 24-year-old defensive tackle from Georgia Tech who’d had a good season in 2025. They also knew he was an athletic freak, testing off the charts in almost every metric. That meant he was a project for the Bears’ coaching staff with significant upside. Perhaps he might be something in a year or two. People weren’t holding their breath, though. Most 6th round picks don’t pan out.
Barely two weeks into training camp, the buzz started percolating. Van Den Berg was forcing people to notice him in practice. Every day, it felt like he was dominating 1-on-1 drills and creating something in team sessions. He went from the third team to working with the starters by the beginning of the preseason. Is this just one of those things where a supposedly weak position group allowed a young guy to get noticed?
Not even a little bit. Former All-Pro tackle Terron Armstead was at multiple Bears practices last month. He thinks Van Den Berg is the real deal and will contribute much earlier than people expect.
You know Jordan Van Den Berg is different when this happens.
Remember, Armstead is an offensive line guy by nature. He played against some of the best defensive tackles of this generation, including a young Grady Jarrett, Aaron Donald, Fletcher Cox, Jeffery Simmons, Quinnen Williams, and Ndamukong Suh, among many others. He knows what the good ones are supposed to look like. So for him to single out Van Den Berg is no small thing. Let’s also remember he is predisposed to hate defensive linemen in general. It comes with being a former blocker. Praising a defensive guy doesn’t come easy.
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It is likely Jordan Van Den Berg reminds him of a former teammate. The rookie shares a lot in common with Sheldon Rankins, the former New Orleans Saints 1st round pick who played with Armstead for years. He, too, was an undersized but explosive defensive tackle who wreaked havoc along the interior. That made it easy to overlook how strong Rankins was. Van Den Berg is built the same way. He’s average in size for his position, but plays way stronger and quicker than you would expect.
Things are about to change if this kid is for real.
Few things make a defense better than a good interior pass rusher. The Bears know this better than most organizations. They saw it with Steven McMichael in the 1980s, Tommie Harris in the 2000s, and Akiem Hicks in the 2010s. Finding them has always been the hard part. Gervon Dexter was a solid player, but not somebody opposing defenses feared. He never had the burst necessary to force double teams. Van Den Berg has that kind of ability. The key will be whether he can master the technical side.
Plenty of defensive tackles have talent. The great ones combine it with a deep understanding of hand-fighting skills and how to defeat various types of blocks. One must have an arsenal of pass rush moves, switching between them to keep blockers off balance. It’s why Aaron Donald was such a menace. His violent hands made his speed and quickness lethal. That is the mountain Van Den Berg must climb.
