Meet the 2026 Bears: A Complete Breakdown of Chicago's Seven-Player Draft Class

LAKE FOREST — The 2026 NFL Draft was held April 23-25 in Pittsburgh. The Bears had seven picks, a first round slot at No. 25, and a set of roster holes that were well-documented heading in: safety, center, pass rush, and depth in the secondary. What actually happened over those three days was shaped as much by the board as by any plan — players falling, trades presenting themselves, positions going unavailable earlier than expected. That's the draft. You don't get to script it.

Here's what Chicago came away with — a home run in the first round, a future starting center in the second, a surprise tight end shortly after, and a wide receiver with a 4.28 forty and one of the better origin stories in the entire draft class. They also came away without a single edge rusher — the position we identified in our pre-draft series as the team's most pressing defensive need — and that's a real conversation worth having. But first, the picks.

Round 1, Pick 25: Dillon Thieneman, S, Oregon

6'0", 201 lbs | 4.35 40-yard dash

This is the one. The pick that reshapes the back end of Dennis Allen's defense and answers the most urgent question on this roster. When we wrote Part 1 of the Offseason Needs series in late February, the Bears had zero safeties under contract. They signed Coby Bryant in free agency, which addressed half the problem. Thieneman addresses the other half — and then some.

Thieneman spent two seasons at Purdue before transferring to Oregon for 2025, where he earned First-Team All-Big Ten and First-Team All-American honors. His career numbers across three seasons are staggering for the position: 306 tackles, 8 interceptions, 14 pass breakups, 10 tackles for loss. He posted those numbers playing every game, against Big Ten competition, in multiple different schemes. At the NFL Combine, he ran a 4.35 in the forty, posted a 41-inch vertical, and put up 18 bench press reps at 225 pounds — the most among all safeties.

Ryan Poles was not subtle about how he felt when Thieneman was still on the board at 25. "Dillon's tape popped out," he said. "Just the sense of urgency that he plays with, the play speed … the guy's obsessed with football. He's extremely fast, a great leader, violent in the way that he plays the game; everything that we're looking for." He compared Thieneman to 2025 first-round pick Colston Loveland — "a very similar type person/player combination" — which, if it tracks, means the Bears just landed back-to-back elite character players in consecutive first rounds.

Multiple pre-draft mock drafts had Thieneman gone before pick 25. He was not supposed to be there. When the Bears called his name, it was a legitimate gift from the board — a need addressed with value on top of it. NFL.com's Lance Zierlein called him "a savvy three-year starter with NFL size, speed and alignment versatility" who can play strong safety, free safety, and nickel corner without missing a beat. He is a Day 1 starter.

Round 2, Pick 57: Logan Jones, C, Iowa

6'2", 299 lbs | Rimington Trophy winner, 2025

If you read our pre-draft center prospect preview, Logan Jones was already on your radar. We profiled him as one of the Bears' most realistic second-round targets — a Rimington Trophy winner whose zone-blocking fit, athleticism, and Iowa pedigree checked every box for what Ben Johnson's offense needs. The Bears took him at 57. It was not a surprise to anyone who had been following the pre-draft process closely.

When we wrote Part 3.5 of the Offseason Needs series — the installment nobody expected, triggered by Drew Dalman's shocking mid-offseason retirement — the question was whether the Bears could find a long-term answer at center without blowing up their cap. The answer arrived in the second round.

Jones won the 2025 Rimington Trophy as the best center in college football. He was also part of an Iowa offensive line that won the Joe Moore Award — given to the best offensive line in college football — and was a unanimous All-American. In his final season at Iowa, he allowed just one sack and three quarterback pressures across 704 offensive snaps and earned a 90.2 pass-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus — first among all 307 centers evaluated. Over his four years with the Hawkeyes, he allowed just five total sacks. He started 51 games in six seasons at Iowa (redshirt in 2020), became a team captain, and took over the role vacated by Tyler Linderbaum — the best center in the NFL — and held it down with a level of consistency that made him the consensus best center in college football.

The plan is clear: Garrett Bradbury starts in 2026 on a one-year rental while Jones develops. When Jones is ready — which could be partway through the season if he earns it, or at the start of 2027 if the Bears want to be conservative — he takes over. "He's mature, composed, the football intelligence really stood out," director of player personnel Trey Koziol said. "A captain. A leader. Grown man, pro-ready habits." This is the center position for the next decade. Ryan Poles addressed a problem nobody saw coming in early March and landed one of the cleanest fits in the draft.

Round 2/3 (via trade), Pick 69: Sam Roush, TE, Stanford

6'6", 267 lbs | Second-Team All-ACC, 2025

This one raised eyebrows, and honestly, it should have. The Bears traded down from pick 60 to 69 with the Tennessee Titans — getting an extra fifth-round pick in the process — and used the new pick on a tight end. Chicago already has Cole Kmet and Colston Loveland. Tight end was nowhere near the top of anyone's needs list. Poles addressed it directly: "Nothing changes for Cole. Our feelings for Cole don't change."

So why Roush? The answer is in Ben Johnson's offense. Chicago is one of the NFL's heaviest users of 12 and 13 personnel — two and three tight end sets. Johnson wants a third tight end who can actually block at the line of scrimmage, not just a glorified fullback. NFL.com's Lance Zierlein described Roush as "one of the few plug-and-play 'Y' tight ends available" in a draft loaded with receiving-only tight ends. He can cut-block in zone, handle combo blocks in gap schemes, and hold his own in pass protection. That allows Johnson to run 13 personnel with three genuinely credible blockers at tight end, which makes the play-action game nearly impossible to key on.

The production is there, too. Roush played all 48 games across four seasons at Stanford, catching 119 passes for 1,201 yards and four touchdowns, and was second-team All-ACC as a senior with 49 receptions and 545 yards. He's also finishing a master's degree in computer science with a focus on artificial intelligence — which puts him firmly in the mold of the kind of person Poles keeps drafting.

Round 3, Pick 89: Zavion Thomas, WR, LSU

5'10", 190 lbs | 4.28 40-yard dash

Wide receiver wasn't at the top of the Bears' publicly stated needs list heading into Pittsburgh — not with the DJ Moore trade still fresh and the defense carrying more urgent holes. But the Moore departure did leave a real void at receiver depth and in the return game, and plenty of analysts had flagged it as a quiet need. Thomas was projected as a Day 3 pick by most outlets — ESPN had him as the 17th-ranked wide receiver still available when the Bears took him at 89. The pick raised eyebrows at the time, and that's fair. But spend five minutes watching his tape and you understand why Ben Johnson was apparently "doing his little rocking" in the draft room when he saw it.

Thomas is fast. Not just fast — 4.28-in-the-forty fast, which ranked third among all wide receivers at the 2026 Combine and sits among the top 15 times ever recorded at the position. He played at Mississippi State and LSU, compiled 95 combined punt and kick returns over four collegiate seasons, earned Freshman All-American honors as a return specialist, and ran the football 40 times for 198 yards over his career. He's the kind of player who can line up in the backfield, in the slot, on the outside, or back deep for returns — and none of those alignments look wrong.

The Chicago connection doesn't hurt. Thomas says he is a distant relative of Walter Payton — a relation that runs through his grandfather, who told him just after the pick that he and Payton "used to share a bed sometimes when they were kids." Poles said he wasn't aware of the connection when he made the pick. Whether or not the family tree is ultimately confirmed, the story landed the way you'd expect it to in this city. Thomas told reporters: "I can't even explain that feeling. That's a feeling I never had before." The Athletic's Dane Brugler projects him as a return man and gadget role player capable of creating explosives. That's exactly what Johnson needs to replace what DJ Moore provided in the offense.

Round 4 (via trade up), Pick 124: Malik Muhammad, CB, Texas

6'0", 189 lbs | 4.42 40-yard dash

The Bears made their first trade up of Day 3 here, sending picks 129 and 144 to the Carolina Panthers to move up five spots for Muhammad. It was a small overpay in draft capital terms, but it signals that Poles identified him as a player he couldn't afford to let slip.

Muhammad wasn't a name we profiled in our pre-draft cornerback piece — but the broader point we made there absolutely applies here. We wrote that the Al Harris effect — the passing game coordinator who developed All-Pro defensive backs in both Dallas and Chicago — makes it easy to see the Bears targeting a developmental cornerback they can mold, rather than reaching for a polished Day 1 starter. Muhammad fits that profile precisely. He started 27 games over his final two seasons at Texas, plays with good length, and describes himself as "an all-around DB, not just a cornerback" — citing his ability to play nickel in addition to the outside. His 4.42 forty gives him the speed to match up in man coverage, and Bears national scout John Syty highlighted his ability to "stick at the top of routes" and diagnose zone coverages as the traits that drew Chicago's interest. NFL.com's Zierlein called him a player with "Day 2 talent and starter-level ability." Under Harris, he has a genuine path to meaningful snaps.

Round 5 (via trade), Pick 166: Keyshaun Elliott, LB, Arizona State

6'1¾", 231 lbs

Elliott arrives via the same Carolina trade that netted Muhammad — the Bears received pick 166 in return for moving up to 124. It is, in essence, a free linebacker on top of the cornerback they wanted.

He's a two-year starter at Arizona State who transferred from New Mexico State and immediately became the defensive play-caller — wearing the green dot at the Mike linebacker spot. In 2025, he led the Sun Devils with 98 tackles, more than 14 tackles for loss, and seven sacks, earning Second-Team All-Big 12 honors. He's built his game in the mold of Fred Warner — the 49ers All-Pro linebacker who Elliott has studied closely and cited as a personal model. Bears west coast area scout Reese Hicks said it plainly: "High-end intangible player. Smart, instinctive. Everything you want in a player, especially on Day 3."

Noah Sewell is recovering from a torn Achilles, which created an opening at linebacker depth. Elliott fills it and comes to camp ready to compete for special teams reps immediately.

Round 6 (via trade up), Pick 213: Jordan van den Berg, DT, Georgia Tech

6'3", 310 lbs | Born in Johannesburg, South Africa

The Bears traded both of their seventh-round picks to the Buffalo Bills to move up into the sixth round for van den Berg — which tells you something about how strongly the coaching staff felt about this one. Bears national scout Brendan Rehor confirmed it: "Our coaches have been pounding the table for this kid for a long time, really the last two weeks."

The backstory alone is worth reading twice. Van den Berg was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he grew up playing rugby and cricket. His grandfather, Francoise van den Berg, was a two-time finalist at Mr. Universe — the 1967 competition was won by Arnold Schwarzenegger. His grandmother set multiple South African national swimming records. His family moved to the United States when he was 10, and he didn't start playing football until high school, allowed to try it for the first time as a sophomore. He played at Iowa Western Community College, then spent three seasons as a backup at Penn State, then transferred to Georgia Tech — where, as a starter in 2025, he led the Yellow Jackets with 11.0 tackles for loss, which ranked second nationally among all defensive tackles.

He was not invited to the NFL Combine — widely considered an oversight — and responded by putting up a perfect 10.00 Relative Athletic Score at Georgia Tech's Pro Day, with 35 bench press reps, a 4.9 forty, a 36-inch vertical, and a 9-foot-11 broad jump. He is, by every athletic measurement, an elite physical specimen at defensive tackle. The Bears needed defensive line help all draft long. They addressed it with one of the most fascinating picks in the entire class.

The Elephant in the Room: No Edge Rusher

It has to be addressed. We spent an entire installment of the pre-draft series on the edge rusher class and what it could mean for the Bears, who ranked second-to-last in pass-rush win rate last season and have Montez Sweat as their only proven pass rusher. Chicago did not draft a single edge rusher across seven picks. Not one.

Poles' response post-draft was that the board dictated the class — that the players Chicago valued were available at positions they addressed. That may be true. It also may be that the Bears believe Austin Booker can take a leap in his second full season, or that there are veteran free agent options they'll pursue before training camp. But walking out of a draft in which the edge rusher class was considered historically deep, without addressing the position at all, is something this fanbase has a right to notice and question. The pass rush was a problem in 2025. It remains unresolved.

What makes it harder to dismiss is what Dennis Allen said at rookie minicamp. Allen was candid — more candid than coaches usually are — about the diagnosis. He and Ben Johnson had discussed the pass rush failures at length throughout the offseason, and Allen confirmed their conclusion publicly. "We had a lot of discussions this offseason about a lot of different things, and one of the things we identified was me," Allen said. "We focused so much on installing all the scheme last year because it was brand new, and we do have a high volume of things we carry in the defense. We focused so much on that that we lost sight of some of the fundamentals and techniques that it takes to function, to do those things. I don't think we were as fundamentally sound defensively as we need to be." Johnson echoed it: "We're certainly going to coach better than what we did a year ago. It starts there."

That's a fair and honest self-assessment. The schematic install was real. The injuries to Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner were real. But the concern is that the answer — coach the fundamentals better — is being applied to essentially the same group of pass rushers. I have no doubt that a cleaner install and a sharper focus on technique will help. What I struggle with is the idea that any amount of better coaching turns last season's edge rusher unit into an elite one, or even a league-average one, because fundamentally the personnel problem wasn't addressed. Poles mentioned the possibility of adding a veteran presence before training camp, and Windy City Gridiron's Bill Zimmerman has predicted that Cameron Jordan — who played under Allen in New Orleans for a decade — could still join the fold. That would help. But until something changes on the edge, this remains the most legitimate vulnerability on an otherwise improving roster.

The Bottom Line

Thieneman is a home run. Jones is a long-term solution at a position that didn't exist as a need until March. Van den Berg is a physically elite defensive tackle with one of the best stories in the entire class. Add a gadget receiver who might be a distant relative of the greatest Bear to ever play the game, and a cornerback tailor-made for the Al Harris development track, and this class has real substance — even with the edge rusher void sitting there unaddressed.

Ryan Poles has now drafted 14 players in two years. The 2025 class produced Colston Loveland, Ozzy Trapilo, and Kyle Monangai as contributors in Year 1. If the 2026 class produces even half that rate of immediate impact, Caleb Williams' third season has the foundation it needs. The edge rusher question lingers. But between Pittsburgh and Lake Forest, a lot of good things happened.