Bears 2026 Draft Prospect Preview, Part 3: Centers

Two weeks ago, center wasn't on the Bears' draft board.

Drew Dalman was coming off a Pro Bowl season, anchoring the NFL's top-ranked pass-blocking offensive line. He was 27 years old, two years into a three-year deal, and playing the best football of his life. Then he walked away — no public explanation, no warning, $24 million still on the table. We covered the fallout in Part 3.5 of the Offseason Needs series, and the reality hasn't changed: the Bears lost the seventh-best center in football, and nothing in free agency came close to replacing him.

Tyler Linderbaum — the best center on the free-agent market — signed a record three-year, $81 million deal with the Raiders, a contract well beyond what the Bears were ever going to pay at the position. Tyler Biadasz, a more realistic target, went to the Chargers before the Bears could act. Chicago pivoted to a trade for Garrett Bradbury, sending a 2027 fifth-round pick to New England for a former first-round pick who started every game on the Patriots' Super Bowl run. Bradbury is 30 years old, carries a $5.7 million cap hit, and graded 30th out of 40 qualifying centers by PFF in 2025. He's a stopgap — and the draft is where the long-term answer lives.

Which is why, less than 24 hours after the Bradbury trade became official, the Bears sent a large contingent of scouts and coaches to Kansas State's pro day — with the explicit focus, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, of evaluating center Sam Hecht. Director of Player Personnel Trey Koziol and offensive line coach Dan Roushar were both on hand. The message was clear: the draft is where the long-term answer lives.

About This Series

This is the third installment of the Bears 2026 Draft Prospect Preview. In Part 1, we broke down the edge rusher class. In Part 2, we profiled the offensive tackle prospects who could protect Caleb Williams' blindside. Today we turn to center — a position that wasn't supposed to be on the list, but is now one of the most important picks the Bears will make in Pittsburgh. Here's the full series:

Part 1: Edge Rushers — A loaded class with answers at every pick.
Part 2: Offensive Tackles — Protecting Caleb Williams' blindside and beyond.
Part 3: Centers (today) — Drew Dalman's replacement is somewhere in this draft.
Part 4: Safety & Defensive Backs — Kevin Byard is gone. The back end needs youth.

The Center Situation, in Brief

Dalman started all 17 games and both playoff contests in 2025. He played 1,154 offensive snaps — the most of any center in the NFL. PFF graded him as the seventh-best center in football. He allowed one sack all season. The Bears allowed 24 sacks as a team in 2025, down from 68 the year before he arrived. That's the player who walked away.

Bradbury fills the chair for 2026, and he'll benefit from playing between Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson — a significant upgrade over the interior help he had in New England. But he's on a one-year deal. He turns 31 in June. His PFF overall grade of 60.1 ranked 30th among qualified centers last season. As we wrote in the Bradbury trade breakdown: this is not Drew Dalman, and it doesn't need to be. But the Bears need to find the player who eventually is — and the draft is the place to do it.

The development plan is straightforward. New England ran a version of it: draft a center (Georgia's Jared Wilson, third round in 2025), let him develop behind Bradbury for one season, then hand the starter the keys. Eleven months later, the Bears have that same Bradbury — on the final year of his contract, set to hit free agency after 2026. The blueprint is sitting right there.

One more note before the prospects: Ben Johnson's offense runs a zone-heavy blocking scheme. Centers who are quick out of their stance, fluid movers in space, and technically polished in reach blocks and combo blocks fit this system. Power-only anchors who struggle with lateral movement don't.

A Day 2 Position, Not a Day 1 Position

Unlike edge rusher or offensive tackle, there is no first-round center in this draft class. That's not a slight against the players available — it's a reflection of how the position is valued league-wide. Daniel Jeremiah, NFL Network's lead draft analyst, put it plainly: "There are some good guys like some third-round type players. I don't know if there's one that I would jump on the table for or take in the second round — would be a little bit of a reach there."

NFL.com's draft tracker grades the entire center class modestly. The highest-graded center — Auburn's Connor Lew at 6.27 — falls in the "will eventually be average starter" range on their scale. No center reaches "Year 1 starter" territory. That doesn't mean the class is weak. It means the Bears should be targeting centers in the late second round through the fourth — exactly where their draft capital is concentrated, with picks at No. 57, No. 60, No. 89, and No. 129.

The Top Target: Picks 57 and 60

Sam Hecht — Kansas State — Center — RS Senior

6-4, 303 lbs | 10-yard split: 1.74 sec | PFF grade: 80.3

If the Bears are telegraphing their draft plans at center, the signal is pointing directly at Sam Hecht. The Kansas State product is the player Koziol and Roushar traveled to watch. He's the player Biggs reported the Bears will "get a close look at in the pre-draft process," hinting at a potential top-30 visit to Halas Hall. And he's the player most frequently mocked to Chicago — appearing in four separate post-free-agency mock drafts at picks ranging from 57 to 129.

Hecht's story is a good one. He joined Kansas State as a walk-on in 2021, earned a scholarship, and finished his career starting the Wildcats' final 25 games at center. His 2025 season was remarkably clean: zero sacks allowed, zero quarterback hits, just seven pressures on 392 pass-blocking snaps, and zero penalties on 759 total snaps. Those numbers earned him invitations to both the East-West Shrine Game and the Senior Bowl — where one scout compared him directly to Drew Dalman, describing him as "quick out of his stance and such a fluid mover."

That comparison carries particular weight given the Bears' situation. Bleacher Nation's Luis Medina wrote that Hecht's profile "reads like something I would have expected Drew Dalman's profile to look like" — a technically polished, zone-scheme-ready center who could use his rookie season as a development year behind Bradbury before stepping into the starter's role in 2027. SI Bears went further in their post-free-agency mock, calling Hecht "ruthlessly efficient" with "A+ technique in pass protection, always combining solid footwork with strong hands and accurate placement."

The concerns are real. WalterFootball described Hecht as a "love/hate prospect" among team sources. Some evaluators believe he's maxed out physically — that his 303-pound frame can't add much more mass, and his below-average power will be a liability against NFL nose tackles. Others see him as very scheme-specific, a fit for zone-blocking teams and a poor match for power-based offenses. Mel Kiper Jr. ranked him as his top center prospect; Jordan Reid had him second. Jeremiah said Hecht "can start Day 1" and projected him in the late second to early third-round range.

Bears Wire's Mike Pendleton mocked Hecht to Chicago at pick 57 in his post-free-agency seven-round mock, writing that he "would get an opportunity to sit behind Bradbury and get plenty of learning lessons from the coaching staff and veterans on the offensive line." CBS Sports' three-round mock had the same pick — Hecht at 57 — in the projection reviewed by Windy City Gridiron's Lester Wiltfong, who wrote that he "could see the Bears getting a center on Day 2." A to Z Sports also projected Hecht to the Bears, this time at pick 60.

Jake Slaughter — Florida — Center — RS Senior

6-5, 303 lbs | 10-yard split: 1.75 sec | PFF grade: 79.3 (84.1 pass-blocking, 80.2 run-blocking)

Slaughter is the most complete center in this class by PFF's production-based grades. The Florida senior earned an 84.1 PFF pass-blocking grade and an 80.2 run-blocking grade — the latter ranking third-best among all draft-eligible centers. He was a PFF First-Team All-American in 2024 and a three-year starter who allowed just one sack in 748 snaps last season. His tape against Georgia, Texas, and Ole Miss is what sells evaluators: he diagnosed pressures, handled interior stunts, and kept his quarterback upright with a level of poise that most centers in this class can't match.

Slaughter's calling card is communication and awareness. The cerebral part of the position — making line calls, adjusting protections on the fly, recognizing blitz packages before they materialize — is where he separates from the rest of this class. He told reporters at the combine: "Something I really value in my game is my communication. Center is a very mental and cerebral position." For a team replacing a Pro Bowl center whose command of the line was a major factor in the sack-reduction miracle of 2025, that trait matters.

The evaluator disagreement on Slaughter is notable. WalterFootball called him a "likely second-round pick with an outside shot at the first round." Drafttek ranked him as their C1 overall. But NFL.com's draft tracker graded him at just 5.93 — which on their scale translates to "average backup or special-teamer." That's a significant disconnect from the evaluators who see him as one of the safest center prospects in the class. Jeremiah projected him as "a third-round pick who could come in and get on the field right away." If the Bears use their first few picks elsewhere, Slaughter at 89 would be outstanding value.

The Value Tier: Picks 89 Through 129

Connor Lew — Auburn — Center — Junior

6-3, 305 lbs | 40-yard dash: 5.08 sec | 10-yard split: 1.74 sec | Bench: 28 reps

Before the torn ACL that cut his 2025 season short after 420 snaps, Connor Lew was arguably the best center prospect in this class. NFL.com gave him the highest grade among all centers (6.27). ESPN's Matt Miller ranked him as his C1. BNB Football had him first on their board. Multiple sources compared him to Creed Humphrey — the Kansas City Chiefs' All-Pro center — for his intelligence, quickness, and ability to pick up stunts and blitzers almost before they happen.

Lew is just 20 years old, which makes him one of the youngest interior linemen in the entire class. He explodes out of his stance, has strong hands that latch within the defender's frame, and his feet are quick enough to mirror interior rushers in pass protection. His combine testing was solid despite the ACL rehab: a 5.08-second 40, a 1.74-second 10-yard split, and 28 bench press reps. The youth and upside are significant — this is a player with a very high ceiling if the knee heals properly.

The risk is obvious. A torn ACL for a center who was on track for a potential second-round selection is the kind of injury that drops a player a full round or more. WalterFootball noted that Lew "could have been a potential second-round pick before the injury, but now could end up being a mid-round pick." He's also a pure center with no experience at any other offensive line position, which limits his roster flexibility. And while his pass protection is ahead of his run game, he'll need to add strength to handle NFL nose tackles consistently.

If Lew falls to pick 89 or 129, the Bears would be getting a player with first-round traits at a Day 3 price. The timeline works, too — sitting behind Bradbury for a year while the knee gets right and the NFL strength program fills out his frame is exactly the kind of developmental path that turns a medical-slide prospect into a long-term starter.

Logan Jones — Iowa — Center — RS Senior

6-3, 299 lbs | 40-yard dash: 4.90 sec | 10-yard split: 1.74 sec

Jones won the Rimington Trophy in 2025 as the nation's best center. He also put up one of the most impressive combine performances of any interior lineman — a 4.90-second 40-yard dash at 299 pounds, the fastest short shuttle time among all centers, and the second-best three-cone drill. Eric Edholm of NFL.com named him to the All-Combine Team on offense, writing that he's "a pro-ready center who has the athleticism and training to make a difference in today's NFL."

His 2025 stats back up the testing. Jones played 766 snaps, allowed just one sack, zero quarterback hits, and only three total pressures — a 99.1 percent pass block win rate with zero penalties. The Iowa pedigree matters, too. Offensive linemen from Iowa consistently translate to the NFL, and Jones is the latest in a long line of technically polished, fundamentally sound products from that program.

The downside is size and strength. At 6-3, 299 pounds, Jones is undersized for an NFL center. His frame is narrow, and he struggled to anchor against bigger bodies in college. He's also an older prospect who will turn 25 early in his rookie season. But in a zone-blocking scheme like Johnson's — where quickness, technique, and the ability to climb to the second level matter more than raw mass — Jones' skill set fits. SI Bears mocked him to the Bears at pick 89, writing that "he would thrive in Chicago's zone-blocking scheme." Windy City Gridiron projected the same pick and the same player, noting Jones would likely start in a "depth role for him in his rookie campaign with the chance to emerge as a starter" in 2027.

Parker Brailsford — Alabama — Center — RS Junior

6-2, 300 lbs | 10-yard split: 1.70 sec (fastest among ALL offensive linemen at combine)

Brailsford's combine testing was headlined by one number: a 1.70-second 10-yard split, which was the fastest among every offensive lineman tested in Indianapolis — tackles, guards, and centers included. That kind of explosiveness out of a three-point stance is rare at the position and projects well in zone-heavy schemes where getting to the second level quickly is a premium skill.

The tape isn't as clean. Brailsford's PFF overall grade of 66.1 was modest, and his 60.6 run-blocking grade was concerning for a player at a position where run blocking is foundational. He allowed one sack but 14 total pressures and five penalties in 905 snaps — the most starting experience of any center in the class. At 6-2, he's small, and evaluators have noted that his size will cause problems at the next level unless he's flanked by larger guards.

The good news for a Bears fit: he'd be flanked by Thuney and Jackson, two of the better guards in football. NFL.com graded him at 5.96 — below the "average starter" threshold — and he projects as a fourth-to-fifth-round pick. If the Bears address center earlier with Hecht, Slaughter, or Lew, Brailsford isn't in the conversation. But if those names are gone by pick 129, his athletic testing and starting experience make him a reasonable fallback.

Late-Round and Developmental Options

The Bears also have two seventh-round picks (239 and 241) and could use one on a developmental interior lineman. A few names to file away:

Josh Kreutz — Illinois — Center — RS Senior

6-2, 290 lbs | Bannockburn, IL (Loyola Academy) | Two-time All-Big Ten

The last name alone will get Bears fans' attention. Josh Kreutz is the son of Olin Kreutz, the six-time Pro Bowl center who anchored the Bears' offensive line from 1998 to 2010 and earned a spot on the NFL's All-Decade Team. The younger Kreutz grew up in the Chicago suburbs, attended Loyola Academy, and committed to Illinois — where he started 36 games at center over three seasons, served as a two-year team captain, and earned All-Big Ten honorable mention in both 2023 and 2024. His father coached him in middle school and continued to work with him on technique throughout his college career.

The on-field profile is honest. Kreutz is undersized at 6-2, 290 pounds. His 247Sports scouting report described him as a "tough, scrappy player" who "fires off the ball and blocks to the whistle with intensity." PFF graded him among the top-10 offensive linemen nationally in individual games against Rutgers and Nebraska in 2024. He's smart, physical, and plays with an edge — traits that don't always show up in athletic testing but matter in an NFL locker room. Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune profiled the Kreutz brothers ahead of Illinois' Music City Bowl, noting that Olin has been working with Josh at his gym to build strength and refine technique ahead of the pre-draft process.

Kreutz projects as a late-round pick or priority free agent — he doesn't appear on NFL.com's or ESPN's center rankings, and his size will be a concern for most teams. But a hometown kid with NFL bloodlines, three years of starting experience in the Big Ten, and the kind of toughness that runs in the family? It's not hard to imagine the Bears bringing him in for a workout. And in a draft class where the Bears are likely taking a center on Day 2, Kreutz could compete for a roster spot as a developmental backup — learning behind both Bradbury and whichever center Chicago selects ahead of him.

Pat Coogan from Indiana was a solid center for the Hoosiers and a reliable pass protector for Heisman finalist Fernando Mendoza. He's limited athletically but is a tough, smart player who could compete for a roster spot. Trey Zuhn III from Texas A&M is an interesting wildcard — he played most of his career at left tackle but Jeremiah mentioned him as a potential tackle-to-center convert, which would add versatility to the roster. Febechi Nwaiwu from Oklahoma is primarily a guard who started two games at center for the Sooners. The Bears had Poles, Koziol, and Roushar at Oklahoma's pro day, and Biggs called Nwaiwu an "interesting prospect" — the kind of versatile interior lineman who can compete for multiple backup roles. Luke Newman, last year's sixth-round pick, was also getting center reps during the 2025 season and could factor into the depth equation.

The Bottom Line

Center is different from the other positions in this series. There's no first-round talent. There's no generational prospect. There's no player who will walk into Halas Hall and immediately replace what Drew Dalman gave this offensive line. But there doesn't need to be — at least not yet. Bradbury is competent enough to hold the position for one season, especially with Thuney and Jackson on either side of him. What the Bears need from this draft is the player who takes over in 2027.

The Bears have shown their hand. A large scouting contingent at Kansas State's pro day, with Koziol and Roushar both in attendance, specifically to evaluate Sam Hecht. A player whose profile has been compared to Dalman's by scouts. A player who fits the zone-blocking scheme Johnson runs. A player who multiple mock drafts have going to Chicago at pick 57 or 60.

Hecht isn't the only option. Slaughter's PFF grades are better. Lew's ceiling is higher if the ACL heals. Jones won the Rimington Trophy and tested like a freak at the combine. But the scouting trail suggests the Bears have a favorite — and the draft capital to go get him without reaching. One of these players will be snapping the ball to Caleb Williams in 2027. The work to find him is already underway.

Next up in the Bears 2026 Draft Prospect Preview: the safety and defensive back class, where Kevin Byard's departure and Jaquan Brisker's exit have left gaping holes in the secondary.