The Bears 2026 Draft Thread

[DJ "I'm blessed" Fieri]

Didn't you guys sign Badass from the Commanders?

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Day one grade: A - and if someone wants to give it an A+ no argument from me
Day two grades: W, T, F

 

[Sam Squanch]

Didn't you guys sign Badass from the Commanders?

No, we got Bradbury from the patriots.

 

[Sam Squanch]

I think Gabe Jacas was the selection until the patriots leapfrogged us. There are still a few edges and Days with upside, we better end up with one.

 

[Payton]

Beyond the semi-random positions we’re drafting, it’s how far off the valuations seem to be… You want Zavion Thomas? Fine! But this guy is valued near the end of the draft, not as a 3rd rounder! It’s Hyppolyte again. Sure, fine, whatever… HE WASN’T EVEN PROJECTED TO BE DRAFTED, AND WE USED WHAT… A 4th or 5th ROUND PICK ON HIM?

THAT is my primary issue with Poles.

 

[Jiddy]

Welp…Hopefully Dayo Oyedingbo finds himself this offseason.

 

[beardown07]

Beyond the semi-random positions we’re drafting, it’s how far off the valuations seem to be… You want Zavion Thomas? Fine! But this guy is valued near the end of the draft, not as a 3rd rounder! It’s Hyppolyte again. Sure, fine, whatever… HE WASN’T EVEN PROJECTED TO BE DRAFTED, AND WE USED WHAT… A 4th or 5th ROUND PICK ON HIM?

THAT is my primary issue with Poles.

With that said, the CB they just picked was projected as high as the second round in some mocks.

I just can't understand the insistence on ignoring the d-line.

 

[beardown07]

Welp…Hopefully Dayo Oyedingbo finds himself this offseason.

Nah he blows.

It's Booker and Turner that need to morph into studs, and fast.

 

[averagejoe]

Truth be told I am a rookie hater.

But one thing i hate more than rookies are analysts. If analysts were so great, more rookies should have better NFL success. Especially if teams are following their rankings.

Think we're seeing more GMs/teams breaking from the unreliable "expert" rankings. (Unless youre Jerry Jones. lol)

For instance: 49ers drafted Kaelon Black at 90th overall. Black isnt even the 90th-best RB according to the "expert" analysts.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

With that said, the CB they just picked was projected as high as the second round in some mocks.

I just can't understand the insistence on ignoring the d-line.

Same here, BD. I thought for sure day 2 would be focused on the DL, be it DT, Edge or both. The only thing I can imagine is there will be some post-cuts activities in the coming months, which would result in the Bears addressing the line.

Read up some on the CB we just picked. Yeah, have to wonder how he slipped so far. He has 2nd-3rd round grades from a number of sites I reviewed. And it's not like we're super set at the CB position. He'll definitely fit in.

 

[Payton]

With that said, the CB they just picked was projected as high as the second round in some mocks.

I just can't understand the insistence on ignoring the d-line.

I guess my last comment on this is that Poles traded up to make this pick. However, when a host of D Linemen were sitting on the board in round two, he was content to just hope that someone dropped to him.

Again, we’ll probably like the players we drafted, but that will be while teams run the ball down our throats and we don’t pay attention to how well most of these D Linemen are doing on other teams. However, on that front, there are a few D Linemen that Green Bay and Minnesota took that we could have had. We’ll get a front row seat there I guess…

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Bears grab Keyshaun Elliot, LB Arizona State with pick #166.

By no means instant starter material, he makes for good depth and will obviously contribute on special teams, at least early on. Caught an interesting tidbit from NFL Draft Buzz on the kid:

Only two FBS defenders in 2025 finished with 90-plus tackles, 14-plus tackles for loss and seven-plus sacks, and Elliott was the one from a power conference.

So I'd definitely label this as a value pick which just so happens to also fill a need for depth at the LB position.

 

[wood20ks]

Dalman retired. Saddest story of the offseason.

Thats right he did.......took us all by surprise.....that makes the 2nd pick look a helluva lot better......I give it a thumbs up.

 

[wood20ks]

Dalman threw us a curve. Bradbury is in his 30s and is only under contract for tye 2026 season. They view Jones as the long term answer at Center.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Dalman threw us a curve. Bradbury is in his 30s and is only under contract for tye 2026 season. They view Jones as the long term answer at Center.

I wouldn't rule him out being our starting center at some point during the season for that matter.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

We all know the day after draft grades are pretty much worthless, aside from what analysts and pundits feel how teams handled their picks. But I have to say I'm a bit surprised at seeing just about all post-draft grades for the Bears pretty much landing at B or B-

I thought the grades would have been harsher.

 

[Jiddy]

We all know the day after draft grades are pretty much worthless, aside from what analysts and pundits feel how teams handled their picks. But I have to say I'm a bit surprised at seeing just about all post-draft grades for the Bears pretty much landing at B or B-

I thought the grades would have been harsher.

The picks we made weren’t actually that bad. Many of them filled holes with players with potential and high upside. We just completely ignored what many of us feel is our biggest weakness so it feels bad.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

The picks we made weren’t actually that bad. Many of them filled holes with players with potential and high upside. We just completely ignored what many of us feel is our biggest weakness so it feels bad.

Good point Jidster. I can't speak for others, but I know my initial negative reactions and criticisms stemmed from not addressing the DL with any of our day 2 picks. I would've sworn on a stack of pancakes that the Bears would be very aggressive in going defense with their early picks.

Still, I can't help but wonder whether these were the best picks Poles and co. could muster.

 

[wood20ks]

Chicago Bears: Ben Johnson admits team made major blunder with D-line

The Chicago Bears had a clear problem with the defensive line last season. More News: Bears TE Cole Kmet’s future now in doubt The Bears had the No. 31 out of 32 league teams in pass rush win rate, winning 29% of their pass rushes. Chicago’s 35 sacks were tied for the 22nd-best. Chicago failed

www.chicitysports.com

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Day one grade: A - and if someone wants to give it an A+ no argument from me
Day two grades: W, T, F

Ok, after a little afterthought and reading a bazillion reviews and opinions on our draft, I've revised my grades a bit and added a Day three grade:

Day One: A In Thieneman we not only snatched the best athlete still on the board at 25, we filled the only vacant starting spot on the roster. With each passing year the NFL's secondary is blending the traits and responsibilities between cornerbacks and safeties. Thieneman is the perfect go-between for this modern position. He can pretty much do it all back there. And for anyone watching game film on him, you see someone who zeroes in on the ball carrier with the best of them.

Day Two: C- I'm still not thrilled with failing to land anyone on the DL, at least not until the later rounds, but I'm coming around a bit to why the Bears chose who they did. Jones has a chance at taking over the all important starting center duties well before the season comes to an end, and once he does he should be able to hold onto it for X number of years. Roush might turn out to be one of the better blocking TEs in the league, plus we shouldn't discount the times he'll be receiving passes, altho it will likely not be that many. But as TEs go he has a decent YAC average. Many people like the lightening bolt Thomas, the main complaint here was he could have been taken in a later round, so that we could use that 89th spot somehwere else, such as the DL. Former Bucs/Raiders HC Jon Gruden thinks the Bears got a steal in this kid. And let's not forget the pedigree, he's out of WR factory LSU, that's nothing but a plus.

Day Three: B It's fair to say that the three picks from this day are intended primarily for depth, STs, etc. But Texas CB Muhammad might have a legit shot at some point in taking over the starting spot from Stevenson (who's in his contract year BTW) if the latter continues his inconsistency. He's known for his coverage skills, altho he's a bit on the thinnish side. He'll probably need to fatten up a bit to handle NFL receivers. LB Elliot brings some credible experience and stats with him as he enters the league. I have a feeling we'll be hearing his name on STs a lot. Our last pick, the sizable, athletic DT van den Berg held in own in the ACC, landing as a first team selection. He had 10 TFL in his final year. He'll have a shot at cracking the DT unit, but at the very least should make the practice squad.