Free agency is done. The draft is done. Undrafted free agency is done. Every major section of the NFL offseason has passed. Now the Chicago Bears will begin preparations for training camp, where head coach Ben Johnson and general manager Ryan Poles look to whittle down the roster into what they hope is another playoff contender. A lot has changed in the past few months. Several starters from last season are gone, headlined by Kevin Byard, Nahshon Wright, Jaquan Brisker, and D.J. Moore.

Some wonder if the team will have the necessary depth required to make a run this year or if they lost too much. To assess that, we are looking at the state of the roster ahead of training camp. Who are the locks to earn jobs, and who has work to do to earn a spot? How things play out may help determine whether this Bears team is strong enough.

The Chicago Bears have some interesting depth battles ahead.

Quarterbacks

• Lock: Caleb Williams, Tyson Bagent
• Good chance: Case Keenum
• Long shot: Miller Moss

This one seems pretty straightforward. The Bears carried three quarterbacks into the regular season last year. All three of those quarterbacks are still on the roster. Maybe they change their minds on that number if they wish to hold onto somebody at another position. Otherwise, the only person in the mix with virtually no shot to make it is Moss. The best he can hope for is a practice squad spot.

Running backs

• Lock: D’Andre Swift, Kyle Monangai
• Good chance: Roschon Johnson
• Long shot: Brittain Brown, Deion Hankins, Coleman Bennett

This position is a little more wide open. Right now, Johnson has the inside track on that third spot behind Swift and Monangai because of his special teams experience. However, it is far from a firm grip, given his injury problems. The door is open for one of the younger guys to make an impression this summer. Bennett is probably one to watch. He was impressive at Kennessaw State. His arrival as an undrafted free agent is noteworthy.

Wide Receivers

• Lock: Rome Odunze, Luther Burden, Khalif Raymond, Zavion Thomas
• Good chance: Jahdae Walker
• Long shot: JP Richardson, Omar Kelly, Squirrel White, Maurice Alexander

This position group seems mostly settled before training camp even begins. Raymond isn’t going anywhere because of his connection to head coach Ben Johnson and his special teams value. Thomas is a 3rd round pick. Walker finished last season strong and has a tight bond with Williams. That is five spots accounted for, leaving one left for the remaining four guys to fight over. Keep an eye on which of them stands out on special teams in the preseason three months from now.

Tight ends

• Lock: Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet, Sam Roush
• Good chance: N/A
• Long shot: Stephen Carlson, Hayden Large, Nikola Kalinic, Qadir Ismail

The Chicago Bears only carried three tight ends into the regular season last year, so this position might already be sewn up before camp even begins. Loveland and Kmet are no-doubt starters, and Roush was a 3rd round pick. They have big plans for him. It falls on the other four guys to make a strong enough impression to compel the coaching staff to alter their plans and carry a fourth.

Offensive line

• Lock: Joe Thuney, Garrett Bradbury, Logan Jones, Jonah Jackson, Darnell Wright, Braxton Jones
• Good chance: Jedrick Wills, Theo Benedet, Luke Newman
• Long shot: Kiran Amegadjie, Caden Barnett, Kyle Hergel, Jaren Kump, Jordan McFadden

Much of this depends on how the two roster battles at left tackle and center shake out. There is an outside possibility that the Bears may wish to trade Bradbury if he loses to Jones. Barring that, it’s a rather crowded position group. Amegadjie isn’t protected by his draft status anymore. The two prominent names to watch for, maybe for grabbing a tenth spot on the depth chart, are McFadden, who started a playoff game, and Barnett, who the Bears paid a lot to sign as an undrafted free agent.

Defensive line

• Lock: Montez Sweat, Gervon Dexter, Grady Jarrett, Austin Booker, Dayo Odeyingbo, Shemar Turner
• Good chance: Daniel Hardy, Jordan Van Den Berg, Neville Gallimore
• Long shot: Kentavius Street, James Lynch, Jayden Loving, Jamree Kromah, Jonathan Garvin, Jeremiah Martin

As much as fans may wish otherwise, the team is stuck with Odeyingbo for at least one more season. Hardy should stick because of his special teams value, while Gallimore and Van Den Berg offer high potential as interior pass rushers. Everybody else doesn’t really stand out as valuable enough to justify a guaranteed spot. That becomes especially true if the Bears decide to sign another veteran to fortify the edge rusher position before the season, as many expect.

Linebackers

• Lock: T.J. Edwards, Devin Bush, Keyshaun Elliott, D’Marco Jackson
• Good chance: Jack Sanborn, Ruben Hyppolite
• Long shot: Noah Sewell, Nephi Sewell, Dominique Hampton

Edwards and Bush should be unquestioned starters on defense, while Jackson and Sanborn likely battle it out for the third spot. Elliott and Hyppolite are both recent draft picks. Sewell had the misfortune of getting hurt last season, leaving his future uncertain. There really isn’t much room for discussion at linebacker this year. Most of the spots seem pretty much locked in, barring a surprise.

Cornerbacks

• Lock: Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Tyrique Stevenson, Malik Muhammad
• Good chance: Josh Blackwell
• Long shot: Terell Smith, Zah Frazier, Jaylon Jones, Dallis Flowers, Dontae Manning, KC Eziomune

Like wide receiver, the cornerback position seems pretty top-heavy with four guys almost certain to get roster spots. Blackwell is a strong possibility due to his immense special teams value. That means the remaining six players must fight it out for the sixth spot. Smith is coming off a torn ACL, which makes him an unknown quantity. Frazier didn’t practice or play at all last season. Jones may have an early edge from special teams experience. It is a bit of a jumbled mess that camp is likely to straighten out.

Safeties

• Lock: Coby Bryant, Dillon Thieneman
• Good chance: Elijah Hicks, Cam Lewis
• Long shot: Skyler Thomas, Gervarrius Owens

The Chicago Bears have their starters at safety. Bryant and Thieneman might be the most versatile combo this team has put together in years. Hicks is a special teams ace. He has his spot. Lewis was signed because of his ability to play safety and nickel cornerback, which also increases his chances. Thomas and Owens can only hope that Dennis Allen decides to carry a fifth safety. That doesn’t seem probable at this early stage.

Dillon Thieneman is the first safety the Chicago Bears have drafted in the 1st round in 36 years. That distinction last belonged to Mark Carrier, who went 6th overall in 1990 and went on to make three Pro Bowls. One would think that after such success, the team would be more willing to try again. Yet for whatever reason, the Bears avoided taking safeties that early again. Such stubbornness eventually led to one of the worst draft mistakes the franchise has made in the past 30 years.

The 2003 draft was a good one for the Bears. It was the year they landed cornerback Charles Tillman and linebacker Lance Briggs. Unfortunately, the impact was softened by a brutal 1st round in which they took defensive end Michael Haynes and quarterback Rex Grossman. Both were disappointments. What people don’t remember is that it could’ve been one of the greatest drafts in franchise history. Just two picks after the Bears took Haynes, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected safety Troy Polamalu, an eventual Hall of Famer.

He also happens to be Thieneman’s idol.

Thieneman ultimately fell in love with chasing down ball carriers. His favorite player is safety Troy Polamalu, the Hall of Famer from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“(It’s) really his versatility,” Thieneman said. “I liked watching some of his interviews. If he knew where the ball was going, he would go switch positions with that player so he could be in on the play. So he could have an impact for the team. (It’s) just having the knowledge of the defense, but also the understanding of what the offense is trying to do.”

Dillon Thieneman clearly models his play after Polamalu.

Like the Steelers legend, he operates with a mixture of violence and cerebral intelligence. Thieneman is constantly directing traffic, getting teammates in position, and identifying what the offense is doing. Once he figures it out, he puts himself in the right spot to make a play. Polamalu was famous for that throughout his NFL career. Every time Pittsburgh needed a big play, the safety pulled off an interception or a timely sack to swing momentum in their favor. Thieneman was much the same. There was his huge game-sealing interception against Penn State or his interception to preserve the win against Washington and cement Oregon’s playoff seed.

All one can do is wonder how different that Bears defense in the 2000s would’ve looked with Polamalu on the back end. He and Mike Brown could’ve formed an unbeatable tandem. Then, after Brown started getting hurt, the team still would’ve had Polamalu during that Super Bowl run in 2006. Things might’ve been significantly different in that game against Indianapolis had he been on the field. After all, he proved it the year before when he helped the Steelers upset the Colts in Indianapolis en route to a championship.

Thieneman can change the landscape of this defense.

People always say safeties aren’t as important as other positions on defense. In response to that, one should say that changes if you have a great one. We saw what Polamalu was to Pittsburgh. We also saw Ed Reed’s influence in Baltimore and Harrison Smith’s impact in Minnesota. Dillon Thieneman has that level of talent. This isn’t embellishment. He is a 6’0″, 200 lbs safety with 4.35 speed. That alone makes him unique. Throw in a quarterback-like ability to diagnose opposing offenses, and you start to see why the Bears broke their streak.

Then you have the coaching angle. Much of Polamalu’s success came from working under Hall of Fame defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, whose aggressive style allowed the safety to play his way. Dennis Allen is much the same way. Kevin Byard said as much last year. If that is true, Thieneman couldn’t have landed in a better situation. We saw what Polamalu was in LeBeau’s system. Now we might be getting ready to witness the sequel if things play out as expected.

If there was one pick in the Chicago Bears‘ 2026 draft class that caused confusion, it was Sam Roush. Remember, the team had already taken tight end Colston Loveland in the 1st round in 2025. They still had Cole Kmet, who isn’t going anywhere. Yet you spend a 3rd round pick on a third tight end? People couldn’t understand it. With several other positions that needed help, it felt like an unnecessary pick. Trent Dilfer doesn’t think so. The former Super Bowl champion quarterback knows exactly what the Bears were doing.

Dilfer knows Roush better than most. The tight end spent his high school career at Lipscomb Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. The former quarterback was his head coach from his sophomore year through graduation. It didn’t take Dilfer long to realize Roush was special. He explained to Peggy Kusinski on her podcast that Chicago’s decision made perfect sense for two reasons.

One was economics. Tight ends are cheaper than wide receivers once they reach second contracts, so it makes logistical sense to load that position. The other part is talent. Roush is known for being a physically dominant blocker, but Dilfer thinks not enough people realize how good a pass-catcher he is. Stanford’s troubles masked that.

Sam Roush improved every year under rough conditions.

The past four years have been some of the most tumultuous in recent memory for Stanford as a program. Head coach David Shaw was gone after Roush’s freshman season in 2022. Troy Taylor took over the next season, won just six games in two years, and was fired. That brought in Frank Reich as the new head coach in 2025. Three head coaches and three different offenses in four years. That doesn’t account for the team’s persistent quarterback problems over that same time period.

Despite this, Roush still finished 10th in all of Division I among tight ends with 545 yards. Just 15 yards behind 1st round pick Kenyon Sadiq, who played for a much better Oregon team. More interestingly, 415 of those yards came in the final seven games of the season. So he was really starting to rev things up down the stretch, and in an offensive system under a former NFL head coach. Maybe Dilfer has a point. Pro teams did a poor job in their evaluation process by assuming he’s just a blocker.

There is no doubt Ben Johnson recognized this.

If there’s one position that the Bears head coach is a savant with, it’s tight ends. He spearheaded the drafting of Sam LaPorta in Detroit and Loveland last year. His eye for the position is outstanding. If he pressed the Bears to take Sam Roush that early, it was because he saw something. This shouldn’t be a surprise. Before rising to the forefront as an offensive coordinator, Johnson spent much of his formative years in the NFL as a tight ends coach, both in Miami and Detroit. Of course, he’d know what good players are supposed to look like there.

Presuming Dilfer is correct, the implications of this are astounding. Most teams have the usual tight end makeup. That is one who can catch passes and is an okay blocker and one who can block and is an okay pass-catcher. Then you have the third tight end, who is strictly a blocker. The Bears? They may now have three tight ends who are both good blockers and good pass-catchers. That is unheard of. One can only imagine the diabolical plays Johnson might be cooking up with this knowledge in hand.

Let’s set the scene. Jordan Van Den Berg was a zero-star recruit from South Africa who clawed his way onto Penn State’s roster in 2021. Despite working tirelessly, the young defensive tackle failed to crack the starting lineup for three years. Sensing that his football career was starting to circle the drain, he made a risky decision to enter the transfer portal. That is how he ended up at Georgia Tech playing for the Yellowjackets. Their program had been churning out some pretty good defensive line prospects in recent years. Maybe they could help Van Den Berg take the next step.

Enter Jesse Simpson. The 54-year-old had been a defensive line coach at the college and NFL level for eight years. That experience proved crucial when he assessed what the issue was with Van Den Berg. The simple truth was he didn’t know how to play the right way. Given his size and explosiveness, the young defensive tackle had to learn how to use leverage and explosiveness to his advantage. That means learning the necessary fundamentals, and there was only one person Simpson knew was perfect for that job.

Van den Berg noted that Georgia Tech defensive line coach Jess Simpson previously worked for the Atlanta Falcons, so Simpson made sure that van den Berg watched plenty of Grady Jarrett tape.

Jarrett, a longtime Falcons tackle, and van den Berg will be teammates on the Bears.

The impact was felt almost immediately by Jordan Van Den Berg.

While the stats weren’t there in 2024, there were flashes of what Van Den Berg was learning on tape. His hands became more violent. He stayed low to the ground and used his lower-body strength to knife his way through blockers into the backfield. That first season set the stage for what followed. In 2025, you saw the defensive tackle blossom into a legitimate threat. He had three sacks, 11 tackles for a loss, and dozens of pressures on the quarterback. If you removed the jersey, you’d swear you’re seeing flashes of Jarrett.

For those saying that Jordan Van Den Berg is not Jarrett, don’t ignore history. People always forget that the two-time Pro Bowler was a 5th round pick himself. Nobody expected him to achieve what he has. It came down to learning how to maximize his strengths while hiding his weaknesses. That is why learning techniques is so vital. If almost everybody you line up against will be bigger than you, it’s time to find ways to work around it. Jarrett did it with explosiveness and an endless supply of moves to keep blockers off his body.

The story gets even better.

That is because now Jordan Van Den Berg has Jarrett as his teammate. By strange serendipity, he ends up on the same team that Jarrett signed with as a free agent a year ago. The NFL can be a wild place sometimes. If learning from the film was effective, just imagine what the rookie could glean from daily practices. If he’s willing to pepper the veteran with questions, his game should only get deeper and more diverse. No doubt the Bears are hoping that will be the case, considering the sheer athletic upside the 6th round pick has.

If things pan out as hoped, the Bears could finally have that interior pass rush presence they’ve been sorely lacking since Akiem Hicks departed a few years ago. It would change the landscape of this entire defense. It explains why the Bears are more excited than normal for a player drafted so late. They see the potential in Van Den Berg. They also know he couldn’t have a better mentor. While Jarrett might not be the player he was a few years ago, his ability to impact the team isn’t restricted to his play.

The Chicago Bears don’t sit in a particularly encouraging spot at edge rusher. General manager Ryan Poles didn’t make a single addition to that position group despite clear insufficiencies last season. Everything indicates they are banking on the idea that Austin Booker will keep improving after his late-season surge while Shemar Turner and Dayo Odeyingbo get healthy. Considering the severity of the injuries they suffered, that feels like a rather dangerous risk. Surely there has to be another way.

One thing we know about Poles is that they’re not afraid to dabble in the mid-tier trade market. This is where teams often flip veterans and underachieving players for day three draft picks. Poles does business on it all the time. That was how he landed Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson last year. It could be how he reinforces his edge rush this season. How? It involves something rare.

A player-for-player swap.

In this case, the Bears would ship veteran center Garrett Bradbury to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for rotational edge rusher Tavius Robinson.

Ryan Poles knows the Ravens need a center.

Baltimore had intended to draft one after losing Tyler Linderbaum to the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency. That didn’t pan out as the two guys they wanted, Logan Jones (who the Bears took) and Jake Slaughter, were drafted before they had the chance. That has left the Ravens in a dicey position. Their best option is veteran Danny Pinter, who spent the last two seasons in Indianapolis and has three total starts at the position. Not ideal. Landing a veteran like Bradbury would certainly ease their concerns and add some experience alongside rookie guard Olaivavega Ioane.

The obvious question is, who do the Bears get back in such a deal? The 27-year-old Robinson was a 4th round pick for Baltimore in 2023. Since then, he has steadily improved, collecting 4.5 sacks and 10 quarterback hits in ten games last season. He’s 6’6″ and 260 lbs, so he fits the size profile Dennis Allen prefers. Most importantly, the Ravens likely won’t play him much this season. They signed veteran Trey Hendrickson in free agency and drafted Missouri defensive end Zion Young in the 2nd round. Together with former 2nd round pick Mike Green, they have their rotation set. Robinson will struggle to find snaps.

This solution is a win-win for both sides.

Baltimore gets a relatively cheap center with proven experience to keep their star quarterback safe. The Bears get a solid rotational pass-rusher who can give their front some extra juice. Also, don’t forget that both men will be free agents after this season. So you’re also exchanging expiring contracts. It works on paper. Whether the deal happens depends on whether Ryan Poles and Ben Johnson are confident Jones can handle the starting job, if they feel they have a good backup option at center once Bradbury is gone, and if the Ravens are interested.

Any movement on this type of trade won’t come until June. Teams will have had that time to go through minicamps and OTAs, assessing where their roster is. Presuming the Bears are uncomfortable with their edge rush situation, they can start scoping out the market. The same will be true for Baltimore on the center front. Such a deal will want to get done before training camp, giving each player ample time to acclimate to their respective new systems.

The Chicago Bears knew they had several roster spots to fill even after free agency ended. With only seven picks in the draft, that meant one thing. They were likely going to be aggressive in undrafted free agency, hoping to land some camp bodies and potential hidden gems. All told, the Bears signed 14 such players and brought in several others for tryouts. There is a lot of intrigue going into training camp about who, if anybody, might emerge to impress the coaching staff and crack the roster.

Right now, the primary assumption is that these kids will be fighting for practice squad spots. That makes sense since the Bears are a playoff team and don’t have widespread needs. Still, we see it every year. At least one or two unsung rookies emerge to unseat a veteran for a roster spot. Here are five names with the best chance to do exactly last this summer.

The Chicago Bears have some intriguing options this year.

#5 – Hayden Large (TE, Iowa)

This comes down to whether the Bears want to carry three or four tight ends. They’re already locked in with Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet, and 3rd round pick Sam Roush. Adding a fourth depends on whether the player in question offers something different. In the case of Large, he frequently played the H-back position for Iowa, meaning he can play both fullback and tight end. For a run-first team like the Bears, that could prove useful, especially to a mad scientist like Ben Johnson.

#4 – Jayden Loving (DL, Wake Forest)

One would think a defensive tackle doesn’t have great odds of making the roster after the Bears added four of them between free agency and the draft. Neville Gallimore and 6th round pick Jordan Van Den Berg are likely locks. That means Loving would have to beat out veterans Kentavius Street and James Lynch, among others, to make the roster. That might be asking too much, but the young man had a breakthrough last season with 2.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for a loss. His ability to penetrate the backfield is something this team is looking for. All he has to do is show it on the practice field.

#3 – Coleman Bennett (RB, Kennesaw State)

D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai aren’t going anywhere. That means Bennett must battle Roschon Johnson, Brittain Brown, and Deion Hankins to earn that third spot. Here’s something to remember, though. Swift and Johnson are in the last year of their contracts. The Chicago Bears may wish to add somebody they can keep long-term. Bennett looked really good at Kennesaw State, showcasing a mix of power, contact balance, and vision as a runner. He’s also not a bad pass-catcher, too. Hankins is coming off an injury. The window is there for the rookie to make some noise.

#2 – Skyler Thomas (S, Oregon State)

The Bears had to rebuild the safety position almost from scratch with Coby Bryant and Dillon Thieneman as the new starters. Elijah Hicks should remain as a special teams ace, while Cam Lewis was added in free agency as a versatile defensive back. Thomas built a reputation in college as a big safety with a knack for covering tight ends and bigger wide receivers. On top of that, he was good on special teams as well. These qualities should appeal to the Bears coaching staff as they look to add quality depth in those two phases.

#1 – Caden Barnett (OG, Wyoming)

Follow the money, as they say. The Bears made Barnett one of the highest-paid undrafted free agents in the league this year. That was the first indication that they already liked him a lot. He’s a tough, nasty, physical guard with enough athleticism to play in space. His strength is up to par as well. Chicago endured some injury problems on the offensive line last year, mainly with their reserves, including backup guard Luke Newman. Coach Johnson likely would prefer to add more depth along the interior as insurance.