When we wrote Part 1 of the Offseason Needs series in late February, the Bears had zero safeties under contract. The cupboard was empty. Kevin Byard, Jaquan Brisker, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Jonathan Owens — all headed for the open market. It was the most alarming position on the roster.
Free agency addressed half the problem. The Bears moved quickly to sign Coby Bryant to a three-year, $40 million deal, landing a 26-year-old Super Bowl champion from Seattle who Poles described as a player who "played fast" and "played physical — those are the things that Dennis Allen is looking for." They also added versatile defensive back Cam Lewis from Buffalo. But the other departures stung. Byard signed with New England for $7 million. Brisker went to Pittsburgh for $5.5 million. The safety room that logged more defensive snaps than any other position group in 2025 was dismantled in a week.
The result: Coby Bryant is the starter at one safety spot. The other is wide open. The safety room has been gutted and rebuilt with a single proven starter and a collection of unknowns. Al Harris, the passing game coordinator who developed All-Pro defensive backs in Dallas and Chicago, is the reason to believe the young pieces can develop. The draft is the reason to believe they'll have the talent to develop in the first place.
About This Series
This is the fourth 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. In Part 3, we examined the center class and the Bears' clear interest in Kansas State's Sam Hecht. Today we turn to the position that was the first alarm bell of this offseason — and could be the first pick of the Bears' draft. 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 — Drew Dalman's replacement is somewhere in this draft.
Part 4: Safeties (today) — Kevin Byard is gone. The back end needs youth.
Part 5: Cornerbacks — A sneaky need after Nahshon Wright's departure.
The Safety Situation, in Brief
Byard was a team captain and one of the Bears' best defenders in 2025 — seven interceptions, First-Team All-Pro, Pro Bowl. Brisker played 1,024 defensive snaps as the strong safety. Together they formed a tandem that gave Dennis Allen's defense the flexibility to run two-high looks, quarters coverage, and Cover 3 with confidence. Both are gone. So is Gardner-Johnson and Owens.
Bryant fills one starting role. Lewis adds depth. Elijah Hicks was re-signed but is primarily a special teamer. The Bears still need a starting-caliber safety to pair with Bryant — ideally someone who can play the strong safety role Brisker vacated, with the versatility to line up in the box, patrol deep zones, and match up in the slot. Dennis Allen's defense requires it. And the draft class has the players to provide it.
Unlike center, where the class had no first-round talent, the 2026 safety class is top-heavy with legitimate Day 1 options. Ohio State's Caleb Downs is the best safety prospect in years — a potential top-five pick who won't be anywhere near pick 25. But the next tier includes players who are realistic targets for the Bears, and the question Ryan Poles will have to answer in Pittsburgh is whether he takes the best safety available at 25 or addresses edge rusher first and finds his safety on Day 2.
Gone Before 25
Caleb Downs — Ohio State — Safety — Junior
6-0, 206 lbs | Jim Thorpe Award winner | 2024 National Champion
Downs is the best safety prospect in this draft by a wide margin. He won the Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back, became the first true defensive back to finish in the top 10 of Heisman Trophy voting since Tyrann Mathieu in 2011, and is the only DB in the last three seasons with 250-plus tackles, 15-plus tackles for loss, and five-plus interceptions. PFF ranks him eighth overall on their big board. Bleacher Report gave him a 9.3 grade — the highest of any safety by a full point.
He won't be a Bear. Downs is a top-10 pick on virtually every board, and the Bears pick 25th. The only scenario where he falls is if the medical red flag reported at the combine turns out to be significant — Downs chose not to participate in on-field drills — and even then, he'd likely be off the board before 20. File him under "appreciate from afar."
Dillon Thieneman — Oregon — Safety — Junior
6-0, 201 lbs | 40-yard dash: 4.35 sec | Vertical: 41 inches
If there's a safety the Bears would love to see fall to 25, it's Thieneman. The Oregon junior put together one of the best combine performances among defensive backs — a 4.35-second 40 (fourth-fastest among safeties), a 41-inch vertical (second-best), and a 10-foot-5 broad jump. After two dominant seasons at Purdue, including a six-interception campaign in 2023, Thieneman transferred to Oregon and immediately lined up all over the defense: in the box (357 snaps), at free safety (217 snaps), and in the slot (104 snaps). That kind of alignment versatility is exactly what Allen's scheme demands.
Mel Kiper Jr. ranked Thieneman as his S2 and noted that he "reads the QB well and can close in a hurry." PFF has him 11th overall on their big board. Daniel Jeremiah said Thieneman would be "very intriguing" for the Bears, adding that Chicago "would have a dynamic young player to pair with Coby Bryant." USA Today's Nate Davis went a step further and actually mocked Thieneman to the Bears at 25.
The concern is availability. Most projections have Thieneman going somewhere between picks 18 and 24. He's not a lock to be there when the Bears are on the clock. But if he is — or if the Bears deal up a few spots to get him — the decision might make itself.
The First-Round Target at 25
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren — Toledo — Safety — RS Senior
6-3.5, 201 lbs | Arms: 32 1/8" | Wingspan: 78 1/4" | 40: 4.52 sec
McNeil-Warren is the player most frequently mocked to the Bears at pick 25 — and it's not close. Bears Wire, A to Z Sports, PFF, and HERO Sports have all projected him to Chicago in post-free-agency mock drafts. The overlap between what the Bears need and what McNeil-Warren does is striking.
Start with the production. McNeil-Warren earned an 80-plus PFF overall grade in three consecutive seasons at Toledo. His 2025 was the best of the three: 77 tackles, two interceptions (including a 37-yard pick-six), three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and six pass deflections. His PFF coverage grade of 92.0 was the best mark among all FBS safeties. Opposing quarterbacks posted a 50.3 passer rating when targeting him — he allowed just six catches on 15 targets for 116 yards on the season.
Then there's the frame. McNeil-Warren measured 6-3.5 at the combine — over an inch taller than his listed height — giving him 99th-percentile size for the safety position. His 78-and-a-quarter-inch wingspan makes him a problem at the catch point, and his length allows him to match up with tight ends and bigger receivers in a way most safeties can't. A to Z Sports wrote that he "has the size, length and playmaking ability to fill the void left by Jaquan Brisker — in fact, I believe EMW would be an upgrade at the position."
The concerns are real. McNeil-Warren's 40-yard dash at the combine — 4.52 seconds — ranked 13th out of 14 safeties. That's slow. His missed tackle count jumped to 13 in 2025 after hovering around five or six in prior seasons. And the MAC competition level will always invite skepticism about how his production translates against NFL-caliber skill players. NFLDraftBuzz noted the athletic testing "puts a ceiling on his versatility" but added that "it does not limit his ability to carve out a productive role."
Bears Wire's Mike Pendleton mocked McNeil-Warren to the Bears at 25, writing that "his ability to make plays on the ball and get matched up with big wide receivers and tight ends could be a great complement next to Bryant in the secondary." PFF's mock used the same pick and cited his three straight seasons of 80-plus grades and league-best coverage numbers. The fit in Allen's defense — which uses quarters and Cover 3 looks that reward length, range, and physicality — is natural.
Day 2 Options: Picks 57, 60, and 89
Kamari Ramsey — USC — Safety — RS Junior
6-0, 202 lbs | 40-yard dash: 4.47 sec
If the Bears take an edge rusher or defensive tackle at 25, Ramsey is the safety most likely to be available when they pick again at 57 or 60. The USC product is one of the most versatile defensive backs in the class — comfortable patrolling deep zones, stepping into the box, or sliding into the slot as a nickel defender. PFF praised his "strong coverage movements — precise, controlled and explosive" and noted his anticipation for route breaks.
Pro Football Network mocked Ramsey to the Bears at pick 57 in the three-round projection reviewed by Windy City Gridiron's Lester Wiltfong, who wrote that "Ramsey's skill set could immediately strengthen the secondary" and that he "would likely be in line to start next to the newly signed Coby Bryant." WalterFootball projects him in the second-to-third-round range. His combine 40 of 4.47 seconds was solid, and his ball skills are among the best in the safety class.
The red flag is tackling. PFF noted that Ramsey's "missed tackle percentage jumped significantly in 2024" and that he "was not as interested in tackling fundamentals" that season. For a defense that needs a physical presence next to Bryant, that's worth monitoring. But on talent alone, Ramsey at 57 or 60 would give the Bears a Day 1 contributor in the secondary.
A.J. Haulcy — LSU — Safety — Senior
6-0, 215 lbs | Career: 347 tackles, 10 INTs, 4 FF across 4 seasons at 3 schools
Haulcy is a throwback. NFL.com's Lance Zierlein nicknamed him "Mr. Give Me That" for his ball skills, and the production backs it up: 10 career interceptions — including eight in the last two seasons — across stints at New Mexico, Houston, and LSU. He earned First-Team All-SEC honors in 2025 after posting 88 tackles, three interceptions, and four pass deflections. At 215 pounds with a compact, densely muscled frame, he plays the position like a linebacker who can cover — physical in run support, violent at the catch point, and instinctive enough to sit in zones, read the quarterback's eyes, and arrive on the ball with timing that comes from recognition rather than guessing.
NFLDraftBuzz rated him 85.2 overall and described his tape as "the tape of a zone coverage safety who understands spacing." Bleacher Report's scouting department called him "a top-down playmaker who excels at reading out plays, exploding downhill, and playing through the whistle." His limitations are speed-related — a 4.52-second 40 means he's not a centerfield safety, and his stiffness in the lower half makes man coverage against quicker slot receivers a problem. He also leads with his shoulder on tackles too often, producing shoestring stops that won't hold up against NFL ball-carriers. But in a split-safety or box role — exactly the kind of alignment Allen's defense uses — Haulcy's combination of coverage instincts and physical run support gives him real starter upside. CBS Sports mocked him to the Bears at pick 60 in a draft reviewed by Windy City Gridiron's Wiltfong.
Zakee Wheatley — Penn State — Safety — RS Senior
6-3, 203-208 lbs
There's a certain symmetry to replacing a Penn State safety with another Penn State safety. Brisker was a second-round pick out of Happy Valley in 2022. Wheatley is the latest product of that program's defensive back pipeline, and SI Bears mocked him to the Bears at pick 89 — calling him "the perfect replacement for Brisker" who "projects as a strong safety, which would complement Chicago's new free safety Coby Bryant perfectly."
Wheatley is a true single-high free safety with range that translates from his days as a high school receiver and a college baseball centerfielder. He tracks the ball naturally, triggers downhill quickly, and his 6-3 frame gives him the wingspan to contest passes at the catch point. He totaled 95 tackles and three interceptions in 2024, followed by 74 tackles and an interception in 2025. The concern is his slender build — he'll need to add strength to handle bigger bodies in the NFL. But at pick 89, his athleticism and starting experience make him a strong value.
Bud Clark — TCU — Safety — RS Senior
6-0, 185 lbs
Clark is the ballhawk of the class. He's produced 15 interceptions over the last four seasons at TCU — an extraordinary number for a safety — and his 2025 campaign (54 tackles, four interceptions, five pass deflections) was his most productive. PFF noted "dramatic improvements in 2024 in coverage and tackling." The catch is his frame: 185 pounds at 6-0 is light, even for a free safety, and evaluators have questioned whether his tackles carry enough force to hold up against NFL ball-carriers. He's an older prospect who spent six years in college. But under Al Harris, who has turned raw coverage skills into All-Pro production, Clark's ball skills could translate quickly. He projects in the third-to-fourth-round range — a potential pick at 89 or 129.
Day 3 and Developmental Options
The Bears also have two seventh-round picks (239 and 241) and could use one on a developmental safety or defensive back. A few names:
Genesis Smith from Arizona has arguably the best deep-field range in the class and led his team with nine pass deflections in 2025. He's a willing tackler but misses too many due to poor form. If he can clean that up, he has the athleticism to be a starter. He projects in the third-to-fifth-round range. Michael Taaffe from Texas is another safety worth monitoring in the middle rounds — WalterFootball projects him in the third-to-fifth-round range. Lorenzo Styles Jr. from Ohio State is a former wide receiver turned safety — Bears Wire mocked him to Chicago at pick 240, describing him as "a center fielder in the secondary" with "great speed that the Bears are looking for." He's the brother of projected first-round linebacker Sonny Styles.
The Bottom Line
This is the position where the Bears' draft strategy gets its most interesting test. Edge rusher is a deeper class — Chicago can find starters on Day 2 at that position, as we detailed in Part 1. But safety is top-heavy. The best options are concentrated in the first round, and the talent drops off sharply after the top three or four names. If the Bears want a starting-caliber safety to pair with Coby Bryant, the best path may be to take one at 25 and address the pass rush at 57 and 60.
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is the name that keeps surfacing. Four separate post-free-agency mock drafts have him going to Chicago at pick 25. His size, length, and coverage production are rare for the position. He fits what Dennis Allen runs. He fills the role Brisker left behind. Whether the Bears agree with the consensus — or whether they see a defensive lineman they can't pass up — is a question only Ryan Poles can answer. But the need is real, the class has answers, and the pick is less than six weeks away.
Next up in the Bears 2026 Draft Prospect Preview: the cornerback class, where Nahshon Wright's surprising departure and Tyrique Stevenson's late-season benching have created a sneakier need than most fans realize.