The Chicago Bears pretty much revolutionized the tight end position with Mike Ditka in the 1960s. Since then, they curiously never built on that success. While they’ve had plenty of good players come and go, the franchise never explored the full possibilities of what the position could do. That changed with the arrival of new head coach Ben Johnson. He already understood the massive potential tight ends had, having experimented with them during his time in Detroit. Chicago offered him a golden opportunity to explore uncharted territory. It began when he chose to pair 1st round pick Colston Loveland with established starter Cole Kmet.
It became clear almost immediately that the Bears had a pairing that would allow them to run loads of “12” personnel with two tight ends on the field. Not only would it help open up the running game with their blocking, but it’d be impossible for defenses to determine which of them was the primary pass catcher. The success was almost immediate. Chicago was 3rd in rushing last season, and tight ends combined for 1,060 yards and eight touchdowns. When ESPN released its updated rankings for the position based on polls of top NFL evaluators, the Bears were the only team with two names mentioned.
7. Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears
Highest ranking: 3 | Lowest ranking: Unranked
Age: 22 | Last year’s ranking: N/ALoveland’s production over last season’s final four games showed exactly where his career is going: upward.
He gained 378 yards on 28 receptions (two for touchdowns) over his final four games, including the playoffs. His target share during that span was 29%. Loveland showed as a rookie exactly why several teams tried to trade up for the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft.
“He’s unbelievable,” an NFL coordinator said. “A smooth mover with toughness.”
While he failed to crack the top 10, Kmet earned an honorable mention for his constant dependability as both a blocker and pass-catcher.
Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears: “He’s still a quality player who’s friendly for a young quarterback, good in the run game. They need to find ways to get Kmet and Loveland on the field together.” — personnel executive with an NFL team
The Bears are in exceedingly rare company.
There are very few instances throughout NFL history when you could argue an NFL team had two of the top 15 tight ends on the same roster. The most prominent example is probably the San Francisco 49ers of the late 2000s and early 2010s. They employed both Vernon Davis and Delanie Walker at that time. Davis was a star at that point, helping the team to reach the Super Bowl in 2012. Walker was mostly used as a blocker, but he would later become a Pro Bowler with the Tennessee Titans.
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San Francisco never tapped into what that pair could’ve done together. Johnson and the Bears aren’t making that mistake. Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet were both used in high-leverage situations. Both made huge plays for the team. Loveland had the famous game-winning catch against Cincinnati and torched Green Bay in the wild card round. Kmet caught the knockout shot against the Eagles in Philadelphia and then forced overtime on Caleb Williams’ 4th down prayer against the Rams in the divisional round.
That isn’t even the scary part.
What should terrify those same NFL people is that the Chicago Bears might be three-deep now. They spent a 3rd round pick on Stanford tight end Sam Roush this past April. Most considered him one of the best blockers in the entire class, which is an immediate help to an already great run game. The scarier part is that multiple experts believe he has untapped potential as a pass-catcher. While not as explosive as others, he has enough speed and good hands to make for a perfectly solid target.
Imagine a world where a defense somehow finds a way to contain both Loveland and Kmet. Now they have another giant target to contend with. No defense in the league has three defenders capable of covering three 6’6″ tight ends man-to-man at once. There will be a mismatch somewhere, which is entirely the point. This is what Johnson has been working towards for years. Depending on how things go, the Bears may not just have the best tight end room in the NFL right now, but maybe ever.
