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Since the Chicago Bears drafted eventual Pro Bowl cornerback Kyle Fuller with the 14th pick in 2014, the only other first-round selection they’ve made outside of the top 10 has been Justin Fields, whom they traded up to grab at No. 11 in 2021.
They would love to get out of the business of selecting in the top 10 for a while as that would indicate they don’t own one of the worst records in the league.
Optimism has been running high since Ben Johnson was hired as head coach, and after the seventh round closed Saturday evening and the team was working to finalize agreements with undrafted free agents, Johnson added to that enthusiasm when talking about where the team is now after adding talent and three weeks of his voluntary offseason program.
“There is no depth chart right now,” Johnson said. “If you want to play, you have to go earn it. If you want a role, you’ve got to go earn that. They know that. We were very straightforward and honest with them when they came into the building. I think all we did this weekend was we might have just turned up the notch just a couple of dials for certain people in the building. That’s a good thing. That’s a healthy thing.”
Time will tell if the Bears loaded up with this draft class, which featured tight end Colston Loveland in the first round Thursday night and three second-round picks — wide receiver Luther Burden III, offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo and defensive tackle Shemar Turner — on Friday.
General manager Ryan Poles wrapped things up Saturday by adding Maryland linebacker Ruben Hyppolite II and Texas-San Antonio cornerback Zah Frazier, both speedsters, along with Michigan State guard Luke Newman and Rutgers running back Kyle Monangai. Along the way in a slew of trades, Poles added a fourth-round pick from the Los Angeles Rams in 2026. That gives the franchise a full complement of picks next year after dealing away a fourth-rounder to the Kansas City Chiefs for guard Joe Thuney.
Sometimes it takes time for a new coaching staff and front office to mesh so a club can get on a roll when it comes to drafting and development. You could make a case the team landed two players in Loveland and Burden on whom a lot of teams had Round 1 grades. And Turner, had it not been for a stress fracture in his shin all last season, projected as a significantly higher pick last summer than a late two.
In other words, there could be some high-end talent in this class. Keep an eye on Monangai, a productive and very powerful back from Rutgers. A national scout for another team listed him pretty quickly when I asked last month for a running back who could be a tone-setter that didn’t play for Boise State or Ohio State. He admitted Monangai — the 22nd running back drafted — was a little slower than you’d like — 4.60 in the 40-yard dash — but predicted he would make a team and make a difference.
Questions remain. The Bears cannot tell you who is playing left tackle right now. Braxton Jones will be out until at least training camp rehabilitating from his ankle surgery. Trapilo is probably more of a right tackle. It’s no small issue.
“We’ll huddle back up as a staff after the weekend and figure out how we want to assign guys — right side, left side,” Johnson said. “Obviously with Braxton being out for the springtime there’s a lot of reps to be had, and we feel like we feel like we’re going to have some good opportunities for a number of guys to get better here this spring.”
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Spring reps for left tackles can provide clues but they’re not with pads on, they’re not physically engaging defensive linemen and they’re not the best indicator of what will happen when it’s real football.
Until the Bears prove they settled the position, it’s fair to question how it will play out. There’s no doubt the offense will be better on the interior with Thuney and Jonah Jackson at guard and Drew Dalman at center. If Jones heals and is the left tackle, he’s naturally going to be improved playing next to Thuney instead of Teven Jenkins or Jenkins’ injury replacement.
Johnson quickly used one word to describe Burden, calling him a “stud.” He sounds eager to get to work with the wide receiver and described his combination of size and explosiveness as unique.
In Detroit, where Johnson was offensive coordinator, Amon-Ra St. Brown has talked openly about keeping a list of the 16 wide receivers drafted before him in 2021. He can recite the list of names. Let’s not pretend Burden being the fifth receiver drafted this year at No. 39 overall is a perfect comparison, but it just might fuel him for a while.
“It’s pretty much behind me now but it’s always in the back of my head,” Burden said. “You know, that teams chose other people above me. So, I’ll see them.”
Them, presumably, is the teams that drafted other wide receivers in front of him. Can you picture Burden counting to five after catching a touchdown, similar to how Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes counted to 10 during a 2019 game at Soldier Field? Mahomes used both hands to count to 10 on his way to the sideline in that game, a reminder he was the 10th pick in 2017 — eight spots after the Bears drafted Mitch Trubisky.
What Burden is out to prove is pretty simple.
“That I’m the best,” he said.
Loveland and Burden should help make Caleb Williams better. Maybe even Monangai too. Turner is interesting for the defense, and if Trapilo becomes a contributor at some point, this draft class could make a mark. It has prove it on the field, and the Bears need to win games.
“Our goal was to really lean into the board,” Poles said. “We put a lot of time into it. Not forcing anything really for need but taking the guys — the best guys — and we just keep adding that to the roster to increase competition. I thought we were able to do that.”
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