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NFL Draft is just days away... which way are the Bears leaning at pick 25? | 1st & North
Caleb Williams enters year two under Johnson’s hard coaching and Kyler Murray official lands in Minnesota to push J.J. McCarthy, the NFC North is becoming an arms race. We’re breaking down the Detroit O-line changes, the Packers' receiving corps evolution, and why the Giants just blew up the top of the draft for everyone in the North.
It’s fun to remember that one year ago, Colston Loveland wasn’t even on the roster.
The Chicago Bears’ rookie isn’t a rookie anymore. The tenth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft will head into his second season as a top option for the Bears’ offense and a fixture on the franchise’s roster.
That’s what happens when you draft well. Loveland reminded us of this as he stood in Halas Hall accepting the Brian Piccolo rookie award.
"We just picked Colston, it felt like yesterday," Bears general manager Ryan Poles said. "For him to have that type of impact on his team is really cool to see."
The Bears hadn’t drafted all too well under Poles. But, that was also with Matt Eberflus as head coach. In one year drafting with Ben Johnson, Poles drafted Loveland, Luther Burden III and Kyle Monangai, all three skill players who figure to be a part of the Bears’ offensive gameplan in the long-term future.
On Thursday, another draft like that could vault the Bears to where they want to go. That’s where the Bears have always wanted to be under Poles: where they took the North and never gave it back.
Big picture view:
When Johnson introduced Loveland as the rookie winner of the Brian Piccolo Award, he made sure to recall the short video of Bears Chairman George McCaskey fist pumping after the Bears beat the Bengals.
The Bears don’t beat the Bengals without Loveland’s catch and run for a score in the final minute. Johnson said he watches that clip when he wants a smile.
"His work ethic, how he plays the game, his teammates see that, and he'll continue to lead the team as we move forward," Poles said.
With Loveland, the Bears have a chance to create moments like that for McCaskey. He’ll team up with Burden, Monangai, quarterback Caleb Williams, wide receiver Rome Odunze for the next handful of years to come.
Odunze and Williams came before Johnson, but they’re the most important parts of the Bears’ offensive core. Loveland became a top option for the Bears after leading the team in receiving yards as a rookie, too.
Now, he’s a player that defensive coordinators circle when they prepare for the Bears.
"I wouldn't want it any other way, obviously," Loveland said. "It means I'm doing something right. I have to continue to do that. But like I said, we’ve got weapons, so whether you want to focus in on one dude or not, there are weapons all over."
Those weapons are what make the Bears a team that won the NFC North in 2025.
The Bears are adamant they’ve moved past the successes in 2025, instead saying that success set the standard for 2026. But, it’s hard not to imagine what the Bears can do with another great draft class like the one they had in 2025.
Williams said he had the group in California, training at USC and having fun. Those were real moments, he said. Moments where the core bonds and develops a connection that leads to winning football.
"Having a young core is fun, because you get to have that aspect of growing together and growing your bond and how tight-knit you are, that will grow too," Williams said on Monday. "I think that part of it is exciting, having the young core. I think it's also exciting because we know that the plan is to be together for a while. So we get to grow and we get to build this tight-knit relationship between each other."
2026 NFL Draft: Chicago Bears eye one specific trait in a draft where they're 'ready for anything'
Jeff King and general manager Ryan Poles discussed the draft with reporters, where they made it clear the Bears are looking for a specific trait all weekend and have a plan for addressing positins of need.
That relationship in the present is what that core is focused on, though. Not what it could look like.
"I think it's cool to see what it may look like, but we're here in the present," Loveland said. "We're worried about this offseason, then training camp, then the season. It's cool to think about it, but things don't always go as planned, so let's take it day by day, one foot in front of the other and really lock in with who we have now, what team we have. Unify together, build this culture and go out and win games."
What's next:
The Bears have used 2025 as a bar to expect success. The division title, playoff win and records broken are what the team expects to do in the future.
The best way for the Bears to live up to the standard they’ve set is by acing the second big test. The first was free agency, and the Bears got the players they feel fit their offensive and defensive systems.
The second is the draft.
Draft No. 2 with the Poles-Johnson regime could lift the Bears to new heights if they ace their picks like they did in 2025. It’s a tough standard to live up to, but nothing worth celebrating like the NFC North title, playoff win over the Packers and the 11-win season came easy.
It’s going to be harder to move forward in 2026, let alone replicate the success from 2025. Having the core of offensive players in hand helps, but the Bears might need to find the same kind of core defensively if they want to take the next step.
"They're really talented," Bears assistant general manager Jeff King said. "If it lines up like that defensively, sure. But, you know, we're going to have to not lean on last year either. Like, we have to divorce ourselves from that success and start all over. What this team looks like, we may have more weapons."
That’s the magic the NFL Draft brings. Getting stars like Loveland and productive players like Burden and Monangai in the same weekend is possible.
Seeing Loveland’s emergence as a respected player in the locker room on Tuesday was a reminder of what the Bears can do on draft day with the right regime.
"We'll see how it goes," King said.