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Windy City Gridiron Role Call Open Thread

2025-08-04T15:30:00-05:00

Photo by Ben Hsu/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

WCG members, where you at?

With Windy City Gridiron getting a makeover, I wanted to get an open thread up for any and all discussion about the Chicago Bears.

I’m not 100% certain when the conversion will be fully operational on our end, so I’m not sure when we’ll be able to post new content. WCG will get its much-needed facelift between this afternoon and tomorrow morning, so in the meantime, feel free to fire any takes you’d like in the comment section.

As a topic kickoff, I’d like to know where all our members reside. There are Bears fans all around the globe, so let’s see which WCG member is furthest from the Windy City.

Also, while you're here, give us a fun Bears-related fact about yourself. Do you have a cool piece of memorabilia? Are you related to a former Bear? Did you see an epic game live?

As a reminder, the way you log in to WCG will be new, so here’s a link that explains what you’ll need to do. (LINK)

And hit this (LINK) for an article explaining what changes you’ll see once the conversion happens.

One thing that won’t be changing is that we’ll continue to have the very best Chicago Bears community around.

Thanks to everyone for making Windy City Gridiron your go-to for Bears news and conversation!

I’ll see you on the other side!

Identifying Five High-Round Picks Who Must Develop Into Cornerstone Pieces In 2025

2025-08-04T12:15:00-05:00

Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

Optimism is in the air as the countdown to the 2025 NFL regular season winds down. Plenty of eyes will be on this young Chicago Bears team, but if they plan to take the next step, these five players must lead the way.

It’s been four years since general manager Ryan Poles took over the franchise and ripped the band-aid off of one of the more expensive and older rosters in the league. Since that point, his primary focus has been on adding young talent through the draft. Despite not having a first-round pick in 2022, Poles has made four first-round selections over the past three years. All of which were in the Top 10.

Following a failed three-year stint with former head coach Matt Eberflus, former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is taking over a roster that is ripe with young talent. Even so, it’s hard to argue that any of their top picks have truly reached their potential. If the Chicago Bears hope to be considered a Super Bowl contender, the development of those early-round picks is key.

We’ll take a deeper dive into five of the team’s top picks over the last few years that need to take the next step. Most of these players are first-round selections, but we’ll also focus on a second-round pick that could take a big step in Year 3.

1. QB Caleb Williams (2024 1st Round Pick)

There’s not a single more important player on the Bears roster than their second-year starting quarterback. In 2024, Chicago chose to trade Justin Fields and zero in on Williams early in the draft process. From a talent standpoint, there’s plenty that meets the eye that leads many to believe he’s one of the league’s most talented quarterbacks. Mentally is where he needs to experience the most progress.

Williams’ rookie year was a rollercoaster, but the same could be said for the entire organization. Despite all the obvious signs pointing to Eberflus not being the guy to lead this franchise on the field, the Bears allowed him to hire another offensive coordinator. After 2024, it was clear that the entire experiment was a failure. Shane Waldron was fired just after Halloween, and Eberflus followed three weeks later. That left Williams in a particularly tough spot, especially with the team spiraling to a 10-game losing streak.

Although the former USC product’s interception totals were impressive, his lack of general accuracy was a sizable concern. The same could be said for his league-high 68 sacks taken. Despite the team’s mistakes in 2024, they’ve done everything they can to surround their second-year quarterback with as much talent as possible. That includes the coaching staff, headlined by Johnson, but not leaving out names like Declan Doyle and J.T. Barrett. For a second-straight offseason, the team’s front office has added high-value resources to the offense. That started with completely remaking the interior of the offensive line, and finished out by adding Colston Loveland at No. 10 overall, and Luther Burden with the first of three second-round selections.

Simply put, the ball is in Williams’ court. He finally has the proper supporting cast, starting up front and ranging out to his multitude of pass-catching options. Johnson’s work reviving Jared Goff’s career should provide fans with plenty of optimism. This team will go as far as their quarterback takes them. With a stud offensive coach, a drastically improved offensive line, and plenty of weapons to throw to, the opportunity for a quick and dramatic turnaround is there for the taking.

2. WR Rome Odunze (2024 1st Round Pick)

It is yet another first-round selection from last year’s loaded class. Similar to his quarterback, the former Washington product experienced an up-and-down rookie year. Odunze finished the season appearing in all 17 games with 54 catches for 734 yards and three touchdowns. By most metrics, his rookie season was far from concerning. He had moments of dominance, especially as a down-the-field threat, but his mistakes were just as notable. Far too often, the large-bodied receiver was making mental mistakes in his alignment and even his route running.

Odunze showed plenty of flashes when it comes to living up to his Top 10 draft status, but he’ll need to take a big step, both as a receiver and blocker, in Year 2 to fulfill those expectations. Luckily for the Bears, Johnson brought Antwan Randle-El from Detroit as his receiving coach. Randle-El is a former player (and local product) who is widely regarded as one of the better receivers’ coaches in the NFL. Similar to Williams, there should be no concern about his drive or willingness to be coached hard. More than anything, Odunze needs to clean up his game and have more of a defined role in 2025. Not having Keenan Allen around will help, as will a competent offense that doesn’t see three coordinators in 17 games.

If all goes well, Williams and Odunze will be an elite connection in Chicago for the next decade, but for that to happen, both players must take significant steps in Year 2.

Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

3. RT Darnell Wright (2023 1st Round Pick)

Rewinding to the 2023 draft, the team’s locker room was in a much different place. At the time, it was Year 2 of a new regime following an extensive teardown. The team lacked overall talent, but more importantly, they needed leadership. That led general manager Ryan Poles to pass on a consensus Top 3 talent in defensive tackle Jalen Carter. Despite an interior pass rusher being a sizable need, the front office opted for a one-pick trade down that ultimately netted Wright at No. 10 and punter Tory Taylor the following year.

While Carter has unsurprisingly become one of the league’s best defensive tackles, Wright is still trying to carve out his standing as a Top 10-15 right tackle. His rookie season, like most first-year offensive tackles, was uneven. Last year started rough, but he finished the season looking like a Top 10 right tackle. Heading into Year 3, there’s a strong chance that Wright could become the only returning Week 1 starter from 2024. Simply put, the Bears need him to take the next step in 2025.

New head coach Ben Johnson is no stranger to elite offensive line talent. In Detroit, he had one of the league’s best offensive lines, including a pair of Pro Bowl tackles in Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell. When Johnson took the job in January, he pointed to Sewell as a comp for Wright, which is high praise, considering Sewell is one of the best right tackles in the game. Although the former Tennessee product has flashed periods of dominance, consistency hasn’t been there. The best right guard’ll flank him, he’s played with at the NFL level in Jonah Jackson, and should be a part of a much-improved unit in general. This is a critical year for the third-year tackle, as he’ll have one more season to prove that he’s worthy of the fifth-year option. For an offensive line that desperately needs long-term cornerstones, Wright has an opportunity to establish himself as one of the league’s better tackles. More importantly, the Bears need it.

4. TE Colston Loveland (2025 1st Round Pick)

Any time a team spends a premium draft selection on a luxury position, it’s fair to have high expectations. Going into the draft, it would be easy to assume that the trenches would be the primary focus with the Bears’ first pick. Considering how the first nine picks played out, it’s a reasonable jump to justify the Loveland pick. Even so, this is a team that needs the young players they have to contribute at a high level now, especially if they hope to be selecting outside of the Top 10 for the first time in recent memory.

To this point, Loveland’s progress has been promising. Despite missing the entire offseason program as he recovered from shoulder surgery, the rookie tight end has hit the ground running in training camp. Bears fans should expect the former Michigan product to be involved early and often as the season kicks into gear.

Loveland’s physical profile and overall skill set translate similarly to Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta. Bears fans should expect him to become a focal point of the offense at some point in the future, but for a team with playoff aspirations, the sooner the better. How Loveland’s development stacks up against fellow tight end Tyler Warren will be fascinating to track. The impact of other players will be felt after Loveland came off the board at No. 10 overall.

5. DT Gervon Dexter Sr. (2023 2nd Round Pick)

This might seem like a weird name to round out this list after their recent offseason moves at the position. Last year, Dexter was the only defensive tackle on the roster who appeared to start 15 or more games. The former Florida product started the season consistently getting after the quarterback, but his production tailed off as the injuries along the defensive line piled up.

Between March and April, the team added veteran Grady Jarrett on a three-year deal and selected Shemar Turner with their final pick in the second round. It would be reasonable to look at these moves and question Dexter’s status, but if his snap-share was an indication during the offseason program, it appears that he’ll be playing plenty of one-technique this season. In essence, that development could render Andrew Billings the odd-man out as the season goes on, but it’s worth noting that new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen likes to keep his defensive linemen fresh with heavy rotations. Couple that in with Dayo Odeyingbo’s ability to slide inside, and there’s plenty of reason to believe that this will be the best interior pass rush the Bears have had since the Vic Fangio golden years.

Although Dexter’s role might be changing in this new defense, Allen’s ability to allow his defensive linemen to play an attacking style should help the former second-round pick out in multiple different ways. As a pass rusher, he should be able to play more freely. He’ll need to continue to improve against the run, but much of that should be helped out by the new scheme in place. Dexter can be one of the league’s better defensive tackles, but this is going to be a big year for him. Especially if Billings can return to form and Turner develops as the season goes on. Playing time will be competitive, which should bring out the best in their best players. Fans should be inclined to believe that Dexter is one of those guys.

Ryan Poles’ Early Draft Patterns: Analysis

2025-08-04T09:00:00-05:00

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

This is a deeper dive on the draft trends and results of Chicago’s current GM

Ryan Poles made 21 draft selections in his first two years as general manager of the Chicago Bears, a fact which seems remarkable given that the prior GM had already traded away three picks from these two drafts before Poles ever took the job–not to mention the fact that Poles himself traded away 2023’s 32nd overall pick for Chase Claypool. In fact, Poles has made 34 selections in his four drafts as a general manager–more than 8 per class on average–despite his tendency to trade selections for active players somewhat frequently.

So Poles is making plenty of draft picks. How “good” is he, though, compared to the rest of the league, at actually finding quality players?

To be clear, the goal of this piece is not to determine if Poles has built a strong football team. Nor is it to go over the various trades he has made. Instead, the goal is simply to evaluate whether or not Poles has any particular strengths or weaknesses in terms of drafting talent when compared to available reference points.

Much of this piece will use the historical markers defined by The Draft Research Project, and so in that way this is a more expansive and comprehensive piece than my earlier midterm review of the 2022 draft class. However, this article will be looking for patterns in Poles’ decision-making across his early tenure.

In an attempt to be as thorough as possible, this article will broadly group selections as clear misses, questionable selections, potential hits, objective successes, and exceptional performers. It will note whether or not individual players have the potential to move between those categories. While it is exceptionally premature to evaluate the 2024 draft class, the five selections he made there will be referenced for context and to complete the picture of the Bears’ draft history during the entirety of the Poles-Eberflus partnership. Finally, a few general implications will be discussed.

Clear Misses

Travis Bell (DL) and Kendall Williamson (S) have both performed below the median level that would be expected of a 7th-round pick at their positions, and neither of them ever played for Chicago. Bell has not played since 2023, and Williamson has only played 19 snaps after being elevated from the Chargers’ practice squad (he is currently on a reserve/future contract). If Trestan Ebner (RB) could prorate his performance from his first three years across the next two, he would still be below the median performance for his position in the sixth round; however, even that is unlikely as he currently isn’t on a roster. Trenton Gill, the first punter Poles drafted in his first three years as a GM, is also not on a roster.

Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images

If nothing changes, these four players will be out of the league in under two years. That’s a rate of 19%, almost exactly the 18% rate suggested by the Draft Research Project for the league as a whole.

Then there are players who still might make performance markers for themselves, even if when they do so they will be on other teams.

If Velus Jones were to match his three-year production totals in both starts and yards from scrimmage in each of the next two years, he would still be short of the median production for a 3rd-round receiver.

Ja’Tyre Carter could end up being median-level offensive linemen for his draft status (or better), because he only needs to appear in two more games over the next two years. However, he has not played since 2023 and he is no longer with Chicago.

Finally, Zachary Thomas is on his fourth team, and while he has taken nearly 500 total snaps (with only a third of those on special teams), none of those snaps were for Chicago. He is, however, on an active contract with the Texans and needs only five starts in the next two years in order to be a median 6th-round offensive lineman. That’s not out of the question, but any such success will be for the player and not the team that drafted him.

This means that a third of the draft picks made by Ryan Poles in his first two years are misses for Chicago, but that most of these misses are “typical” in terms of what happens in the draft.

Questionable Selections

Zacch Pickens was taken in the third round, where the median defensive lineman should be expected to provide 58 games, 18 starts, and 18 defensive victories over the course of his first five years. Pickens has only appeared in 26 games with 3 starts and has 4.5 “defensive victory on downs”, or DVDs. Just to be middle-of-the-road, in each of his next three years, Pickens needs to average 11 games, 5 starts, and 3.5 DVDs. The games total is within reach, but the starts seem unlikely on a team that just paid top money for a free agent interior defensive lineman while also spending two higher draft picks on interior defensive linemen. Pickens is at best fourth in the priority line, and that doesn’t include Chris Williams (resigned to a $3mil contract), Andrew Billings, or Jonathan Ford.

Noah Sewell has yet to start a game or record a defensive victory in his 22 professional appearances. The median 5th-round linebacker should appear in 47 games with 7 starts and 8 DVDs across five years. Sewell does have a chance at both meeting the games and the start totals, as the linebacker position is not well-stocked ahead of him. However, he would need to take a significant step forward in the next year or so to have that chance, because he is failing to impact plays.

Tyler Scott has played in 28 games while only making 4 starts, recording only 214 yards from scrimmage; 209 of those yards came in his rookie season. Just to be “typical” for a 4th-round receiver in playing time, he needs to have two more starts in the next three years. He was given perfectly normal chances, especially in his first year. However, he is 257 yards shy of median production. To put it another way, a typical fourth-round pick at receiver manages about 17 yards per game appearance, whereas Scott is managing a little less than half of that. On the one hand, that means he’s probably only one catch per game behind typical. On the other hand, he is unlikely to keep getting balls in a crowded receiver room, and his best chances are probably to end up on another team with less competition.

Doug Kramer has already played in 18 games in two years, suggesting that he might very well exceed the 22 games in five years typical of 6th-round offensive linemen. However, he has yet to start, and the team has needed to continue churning draft picks and draft trades at his position since he was drafted (more than enough to double up all of the interior line positions ahead of him). Worse, the two years he has been on the team, the Bears have been among the worst in the league at his position–this suggests that even when he’s playing, he’s not playing well. SIS backs this up, indicating that he has blown more than 7% of the blocks he has attempted.

Potential Hits

Roschon Johnson was taken in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL draft. Along with Scott, he was one of the favorites of the staff and of fans who commented on that draft two years ago. The average for 4th-round running backs is 9.5 starts in 45 games and post 1478 yards from scrimmage in their first five years. Those numbers are tilted heavily by a few top performers, so a more fair point of comparison is likely the 5 starts and 1140 yards from scrimmage that would represent the median running back taken in the fourth round. Johnson already has 29 games and 815 yards, so if he simply plays at the “rotational player” level he has established for himself, he should end up with a surplus of games and yards. He has yet to start, however, and D’Andre Swift is still ahead of him with Kyle Monangai showing promise in camp. Still, it looks good for “RoJo” to be at least a competent selection at his position even if it’s not guaranteed at this point.

Gervon Dexter has started 16 games and played in 32 of them. He has been credited with 14.5 plays that would count as a defensive victory on the down. If he could maintain these levels of performance, he would have 80 games, 40 starts, and 36 DVDs in his first five years. That would place him comfortably in the top half of interior defensive linemen drafted in the second round, but not in the top quartile. Can he maintain this pace, though? Grady Jarrett is ahead of him and Chicago just drafted Shemar Turner. As mentioned when discussing Pickens, the interior of the line has a number of rotational players, and so unless Dexter steps up, he could find his playing time challenged. Still, he is likely to be a contributor at roughly the level found for his draft position.

Objective Successes

Dominique Robinson gets a lot of grief from some fans, with a number of them hoping he gets cut. If critics got their way and Robinson were cut today to never play football again, he would have already outperformed the median fifth-round edge rusher. He has more games played (34 vs 30), more starts (8 vs 3), and more disruptive plays (8 vs 6.5). Anything he does from this point forward is “extra”, and he could well find himself in the next tier if Dennis Allen unlocks more or his potential.

Elijah Hicks was taken in the seventh round three years ago and has already played in more games with more starts than the typical seventh-round safety might in five years, and he already has just as many DVDs as he would be expected to have in that time.

If Terell Smith simply shows up for seven more games, he has met or exceeded the performance standard set by the median fifth-round cornerback, and his 14 DVDs in two years show how much more disruptive he is than the typical player with his draft status (5 DVDs). His rate is also exceptional, with a DVD in every other game when one in every seven games would be more typical.

Darnell Wright was drafted 10th overall in 2023, and he has been one of the few bright spots on a shaky offensive line. He already has 33 starts and is on a path to be an anchor at right tackle for his career. However, that is in fact simply the correct level of performance for a player taken in the top ten. He was taken with a premium pick and is playing a premium position at a solid and reliable level. It’s hard to do better than expectations when taken this high.

Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images

Exceptional Performers

Kyler Gordon has played in 42 games and started 34 of them, with 27.5 defensive victories. He is on pace to be a median-level first-round corner despite having been taken in the second round. If 2025 simply repeats his performance from either of the last two years, then he will match or exceed median performance levels for his draft position a year ahead of schedule.

Jaquan Brisker has only played in 35 games, but he has 30 defensive victories. If his next two years have the same level of playing time and performance as the average of the last three, then despite the perception that he misses too much time, he will have played in as many games as the typical second-round safety while also having more starts and significantly more disruptive plays. His concussion issues could hold him back, but football players miss time to injury.

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Braxton Jones is currently locked in a battle for the left tackle position, but by locking down the starting position for the last 40 games he has been healthy for, he has already far exceeded his draft position. Had his injury last season been career-ending, he would have been in the top quartile of 5th-round offensive linemen and the top third of all offensive tackles drafted in the 10-year span considered.

Tyrique Stevenson was drafted a year after the prior two defensive backs, but in his 32 games and 30 starts he has already recorded 30 defensive victories. If he maintains that level of performance across his next three years, he would be as disruptive as the top ten percent of all corners drafted in the first round who were studied by the Draft Research Project. If he has another season that is simply the average of his first two, and then simply takes a snap a game for the first half of 2026, he will have exceeded the median production of his draft position (and he is already above the median for his draft position in interceptions and needs a single pass defense to match the median there).

Implications

Ryan Poles has been excellent at drafting defensive backs early in his tenure, but it is also possible that he does his best work simply when letting talent fall to him in the second round–and that, at least in his first two years, that talent has been at defensive back. By contrast, with the exception of a defensive back (Hicks), he has had consistently below-average performance in the last two rounds of the draft.

While it is far too early to evaluate 2024, it’s worth noting that Caleb Williams recorded a 95.2 passer rating in the second half of the season and Rome Odunze picked up 749 yards from scrimmage (with 12 starts and 3 touchdowns). As ridiculous as projecting either player is at this point, Williams has hit the requisite markers to date to suggest he will be a successful quarterback in the NFL and if Odunze were to have 3,745 yards and 15 touchdowns he would essentially be a median first-round receiver (slightly higher in yards and slightly lower in touchdowns).

Likewise worth noting is that drafting Kiran Amegadjie in 2024, followed by Ozzy Trapilo and Luke Newman in 2025, means that, excluding trades, Poles has invested an average of two draft picks per year in the offensive line. Almost exactly a quarter of his draft picks have gone to this position group.

All of this suggests that Poles has no special strength in the first round of the draft and that his virtues might best be described as a willingness to invest consistently in positions while also being able to take advantage of the way the board falls. It is worth pointing out that his “failures” seem concentrated at the end of the draft, where players tend to be marginal contributors anyway. By contrast, his clear successes seem to be characterized by finding overachievers in the second round and, weirdly, the fifth round. The second round is one of the most important areas of the draft in terms of long-term team-building. This could be encouraging when it comes to the potential of players like Burden, Trapilo, or Turner.

The extent to which these patterns will hold remains to be seen, of course.

The Bear’s Den, August 4, 2025

2025-08-04T05:00:00-05:00

Photo by Ben Hsu/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Bears preparing to play pre-season opener this week, joint practice session

WE WANT YOU!

Would you like to show your Chicago Bears spirit to the world? I’m starting a feature where Windy City Gridiron readers can share pictures of themselves and their families and friends in Bears attire. Simply email a picture to me at the following address: denmasterken at aol dot com. The pictures need to be clear, and full resolution (i.e. full size from your phone if that’s how you take them). Include any description information you like along with the photo!

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARRRSSSS

August 1, 2025

Left tackle race heating up as Trapilo impresses in early reps - Ozzy Trapilo is making a case in the left tackle competition with Braxton Jones and Kiran Amegadjie. Coaches have pointed to his footwork and consistency under pressure as key markers.

Bears lock in 2025 preseason broadcast lineup with Amin, Miller, and new voice Dales - Adam Amin and Jim Miller return to lead play-by-play and analysis, alongside sideline reporters Jasmine Baker and new addition Stacey Dales. Lou Canellis will also contribute pregame and game insights.

August 2, 2025

Undrafted WR JP Richardson turning heads with clutch catches in camp - Richardson hauled in a highlight-worthy one-handed catch during 11-on-11s. His speed and special-teams potential have made him a sleeper name to watch heading into final roster cuts.

‘King of the mountain’: Burden benched, bounces back in full‑pads practice - Rookie WR Luther Burden III was pulled from red-zone drills for misalignment but responded with one of his best practices—multiple contested catches and crisp routes. Caleb Williams praised Johnson’s uncompromising culture reset.

August 3, 2025 – Family Fest Highlights

Family Fest at Soldier Field: Defense dominates, offense sloppier—but ends on a high - In a “zero” preseason simulation, the defense made multiple impactful plays including breakups, sacks, and turnovers. The offense struggled early with mental errors and delay‑of‑game penalties. They ended strong with Caleb Williams driving the ball to tight end Cole Kmet for a go‑ahead TD in two-minute drill.

Around Halas Hall – Notes & Observations

Receiver hierarchy settling with Kmet, Moore and Odunze ahead of the pack, signaling Johnson’s early trust in their mental consistency and alignment discipline (pass‑catchers trust).
QB discipline crisis: Johnson’s sharp critique after a rough practice showed he’s unafraid to confront bad habits early—Williams faces a year-one reboot under new standards (sloppy mistakes).
RB depth emerges: Monangai’s short-yardage proficiency and follow‑through earned major praise and early trajectory for regular snaps (Monangai report).
2‑minute QB upside: Williams’ improvisational edge in critical late-game looks confirms his high ceiling—even if fundamentals still need polish (two‑minute drill).
Left tackle remains unsettled: Trapilo’s rise intensified camp intrigue, but staff emphasizes that competition remains wide open (Trapilo story).
Pass rush accountability: The edge duo must deliver takeaways to validate their investment and strengthen this unit—no excuses from Denver (edge rushers need sacks).

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Who will win Chicago’s Left Tackle Competition? The Bears will - A feature by Mongo Peanut emphasizing the healthy competition at left tackle—Braxton Jones, Kiran Amegadjie and rookie Ozzy Trapilo—arguing that whoever wins, the team benefits from building depth and accountability.

8/2 Chicago Bears Camp Recap: Caleb Williams’ process gets better every day - Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. recaps Day 9 of camp: Williams shines in tight-window throws and TDs, Ozzy Trapilo earns first-team reps, defense makes splash plays from Gordon and others, and Colston Loveland emerges as a red zone weapon—capped by kicker Jonathan Kim’s drill closing the session.

5 Plays from Training Camp to Get You Excited for the ’25 Season - Sarah DeNicolo collects five standout moments—from Loveland’s catches and Trapilo’s blocks to defensive disruptions—all meant to build buzz around the Bears’ developmental trajectory.

Chicago Bears Family Fest Recap: Defense wins the day - At Soldier Field, the defense dominated live drills with turnovers and pressure. The Chicago Bears offense started slow with penalties but closed confidently behind Caleb Williams and Cole Kmet’s two-minute TD drive. Coach Johnson praised rookie ground game potential as Kyle Monangai earned praise.

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2nd City Gridiron Podcast Channel which includes Bears Banter hosted by Bill Zimmerman, Bear & Balanced from Jeff Berckes and Lester A. Wiltfong Jr., Bears Over Beers featuring Ryan Droste and Bryan Orenchuk, Making Monsters with Taylor Doll, Bear Bones from Dr. Mason West, The Mac & Read Show from Evan McLean and Ross Read, and an occasional T Formation Conversation from Lester; Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert is another fun one.

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Chicago Bears Family Fest Recap: Defense wins the day

2025-08-03T14:33:50-05:00

Ross Read and family at Bears’ Family Fest. | Pic from Ross Read

Considering the Chicago Cubs were at Wrigley, and Lollapalooza was at Grant Park, it was a decent crowd for the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field today for their Family Fest. The announced attendance was 23,000 for the annual practice, which may be close to, if not surpass, the most attended one yet.

As for the action on the field, the defense got the better of the offense during the live portion of practice, in what head coach Ben Johnson called “sloppier” than where they should be. Several delay of game penalties had Johnson displeased with his offense.

“It’s something we’re going to have to address. It showed up more today than it has in practice,” Johnson said while adding that they “won’t win many games” playing like that.

He was asked which players on offense he trusts most right now to be where they need to be, and he said receivers DJ Moore, Olamide Zaccheus, and Rome Odunze, and tight end Cole Kmet.

He was also asked specifically about rookie running back Kyle Monangai, and he said, “I’m very pleased with where he’s at. I think he’s a guy we’re gonna be able to trust this fall.”

His offense did bounce back to finish strong, but after the previous two practices showed marked improvement by the unit, the defense came to play today.

Before sharing some highlights, a few personnel updates. Offensive linemen Kiran Amegadjie, Ricky Stromberg, and Bill Murray were all held out of practice, while long snapper Scott Daly returned.

Undrafted free agent running back Deion Hankins is in concussion protocol, wide receiver Miles Boykin missed with an ankle injury, and tight end Jordan Murray has a groin injury.

Corner Jaylon Johnson, who is on the NFI list, was on the sideline with his teammates.

Rookie Ozzy Trapilo started the day with the ones, but Braxton Jones also worked in with the starters as the left tackle evaluation continues.

T.J. Edwards said he’s not sure if he’ll be playing the middle or the weakside linebacker spot, but that with him and Tremanine Edmunds learning both, it will benefit them this seaosn.

Now for some Tweets from those at Soldier Field.

Ben Johnson’s first time in front of #Bears fans at Soldier Field. Family Fest means one more week til preseason games! @fox32news pic.twitter.com/HmEbXvbCQp
— Cassie Carlson (@CassieCarlsonTV) August 3, 2025

Cairo Santos just went through a set of progressively longer kicks... longest was 53 yards.

He drilled em all.
— Alex Shapiro (@AlexShapiroCHSN) August 3, 2025

YOLO

Bro........ pic.twitter.com/OJjzwwpHlo
— CNGPODCAST (@GuyWalk91815793) August 3, 2025

Nifty sleight of hand by Tyson Bagent on a play-action fake. He sucked in about 7 or 8 defenders, setting up an easy throw-and-catch TD to TE Durham Smythe.
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) August 3, 2025

Jordan Love is still practicing with bad footwork in year 6 as a Packer and year 3 as a starter.

Yeah, it’s never going to get better.
— Jacob (@NotionsOfJacob) August 3, 2025

How’d that Packers camp report get in there?

Rome Odunze gets a PBU on the final snap of this series for 1st team offense. He knocked a gift interception for Nick McCloud away.

11 trips to line by 1st team offense

- 2 delay of games
- 1 handoff
- 2 QB scrambles (pressured)
- 1 sack
- 2 completions
- 3 incompletions
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) August 3, 2025

Dennis Allen is dialing up different looks. Last drill just ended with Kevin Byard batting a ball down at the LOS.

Grady Jarrett got through on another play and would have probably stuffed Roschon Johnson on a run. #Bears
— Zack Pearson (@Zack_Pearson) August 3, 2025

Bagent just picked.
— Mark Grote (@grotesports) August 3, 2025

Tyson Bagent just ripped a pass over the middle to JP Richardson for a touchdown with the third-team offense
— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) August 3, 2025

Tyson Bagent in as the number 2 QB hits Luther Burden

- cream pic.twitter.com/iVwTKrqEVc
— Cream sleeve (@CSleeve16374) August 3, 2025

Monangai with another td ok ok pic.twitter.com/d1wYXD7OAf
— CNGPODCAST (@GuyWalk91815793) August 3, 2025

Gervon Dexter just recorded a safety when he stuffed D'Andre Swift in the end zone on a drill that started at the 1 yard line.
— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) August 3, 2025

Rookie Luke Newman centering the third string today led by Case Keenum.
— Mark Grote (@grotesports) August 3, 2025

Monangai with the td
OZZY IS A GIANT OMG pic.twitter.com/2rnn1RjzSB
— CNGPODCAST (@GuyWalk91815793) August 3, 2025

Nice route by Loveland and great throw by Caleb to score. Loveland gonna go crazy this season pic.twitter.com/9e7hkXH8AG
— diego… (@d1ego777_) August 3, 2025

Caleb Williams finds Cole Kmet for the Touchdown!!! pic.twitter.com/kGA4HLLHai
— Bears Luchador (@Bears_Luchador) August 3, 2025

DJ Moore scores on a handoff from 10-yards out. #Bears
— Zack Pearson (@Zack_Pearson) August 3, 2025

Caleb Williams connects with Colston Loveland for a 7-yd TD pass in the final series of practice for starters.

Offense drove 49 yards for a TD in an end-of-game scenario in which it trailed by 3 points.

Big 26-yard pass to Olamide Zaccheaus underneath.

Ending on + note
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) August 3, 2025

If there were any other social media posts you saw that you felt were interesting, share them in the comment section.

Comparing the Defensive Approach of Dennis Allen and Matt Eberflus

2025-08-03T09:00:00-05:00

Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

The Chicago Bears changed out Matt Eberflus for Dennis Allen as the man calling defensive plays this offseason. Both men run a base 4-3 defense, with 4 defensive linemen and 3 linebackers, but their defensive styles are quite different. Today, I want to dig into the data to see what we can expect to see stay the same or change quite a bit compared to Chicago’s 2024 defense.

Personnel

Let’s start with a basic look at how many players from each position are on the field each snap. The table below shows that data for both the New Orleans Saints and the Bears across the 2023 and 2024 seasons (data from Pro Football Reference).

A few thoughts:

Let’s start with the one clear similarity: both coordinators like to pull a DT off the field and replace it with a DE roughly 20% of the time (as evidenced by 2.2 DE/snap and 1.8 DT/snap instead of the assumed 2/snap in a standard 4-3 look). That presumably happens on passing downs to help provide some extra pass rushing juice.

•I will be curious to see if that trend continues in Chicago this year since Chicago has significantly better depth at DT than DE. It’s highly possible the Bears decide that leaving 2 of Grady Jarrett, Gervon Dexter, or Shemar Turner on the field gives them a better pass rush than replacing one of those with a backup DE like Austin Booker or Tanoh Kpassagnon.

One clear difference is in the number of LB on the field. Eberflus’ defenses use more of them.

•The Eberflus defense was extremely vanilla in 2024. They played only 16 snaps that were not in a base (4 DL, 3 LB, 2 CB, 2 S) or nickel (4 DL, 2 LB, 3 CB, 2 S) look. Those were their 2 packages, and they ran nickel roughly 80% of the time, which is why they averaged 2.8 CB (2 CB in base, 3 in nickel) and 2.2 LB (3 LB in base, 2 in nickel) per snap.

•Allen’s defense will use a lot of different looks in sub packages, which is why the LB, S, and CB numbers are different from Chicago’s. For starters, they run a lot more dime packages, where they have now 6 DBs on the field, usually to go along with only 1 LB. This was Allen’s base defense on 3rd down in 2024, and has been heavily used against pass-heavy teams going back to at least 2020. We have already heard reports from camp that Chicago’s defense is utilizing dime packages significantly more than they did the last few years, and we should expect that to continue into the regular season.

•We can tell from the S and CB data that sometimes the extra defensive back in dime looks is a safety, while other times it is a CB. Notice Chicago was at exactly 2.0 safeties/snap, while NO was above that, indicating they had a 3rd S on some plays). I am uncertain how frequently this will happen in Chicago given that Allen is not bringing versatile safety Tyrann Mathieu with him, but he has talked some about wanting to use safety Jaquan Brisker in a wider variety of ways, so perhaps that will lead to some 3 safety looks where Brisker is playing more of a snap CB or LB role. Otherwise, it seems likely Chicago’s main chess piece in the secondary will be nickelback Kyler Gordon, who should see a much more diverse role than he has had the last 2 years.

Coverage

Next, I want to examine how Chicago’s pass coverage might change going from Eberflus to Allen.

Expect more man

The first thing, which you’ve probably heard before, is that Allen will run significantly more man coverage. I wanted to put some actual numbers on this for context, because it’s not all or nothing (data from PFF).

This data is from 2024, but the numbers for Chicago and New Orleans’ defenses were essentially the same in 2023. Allen runs man coverage about twice as often as Eberflus did, but the majority of the time is still zone. Now, Chicago should expect to be in man about ¹⁄₃ of the time, whereas it was about 1/6 under Eberflus.

Changes in Zone Coverage

What those coverages look like in zone will vary quite a bit as well. This source shows that the 2024 Bears predominantly relied on cover 3 (with 3 deep zones to try to keep things underneath) when in zone, running it about 3x as often as man coverage (mostly cover 1) cover 2, or cover 4. The Saints, on the other hand, ran pretty even amounts of man (cover 1), cover 2, and cover 3. So not only should we expect to see the Bears run more man coverage under Allen, we should also anticipate a more even split of coverage types when they are in zone.

Tweaks to Slot Coverage

We’ll also see a difference in who gets asked to cover the slot, as you can see in the table below.

Generally, Allen has more CB and S cover the slot more frequently, which means LB cover the slot less often. That makes sense considering we saw above Allen will utilize dime packages - which remove a LB and add a S or CB - significantly more often than Eberflus did. This hopefully should help the pass defense, since S and CB should generally be better in coverage than LB are.

Generating Pressure

Lastly, I want to examine how each coordinator approaches generating pressure on the quarterback.

Not much blitzing

The first thing to note is that neither coordinator likes to blitz much. Per Pro Football Reference, Chicago blitzed 24% of the time in 2024, which ranked 19th in the NFL, while New Orleans blitzed 21% of the time, ranking 24th. Both were below the NFL average of 25%, and that trend was consistent in 2023 (Chicago 22%, New Orleans 23%) and 2022 (Chicago 18%, New Orleans 17%) as well. Obviously, you can see blitz rates vary a bit from year to year, but you shouldn’t expect Chicago to suddenly become blitz-happy under Allen.

It is worth noting that Allen likes throwing a lot of bodies on the line of scrimmage to make it look like he is blitzing, especially on passing downs, before dropping back into coverage. This can be a way of trying to confuse the opposing QB without leaving yourself exposed in coverage by rushing a lot of bodies.

Tweaks to who is blitzing

One slight difference when the Bears do blitz will be in who blitzes, as you can see in the table below.

The biggest difference here is that Allen blitzed his safeties about as often as his CB, while Eberflus mostly used his CB (mainly nickelback) for blitzes from the secondary. I’m curious to see how much this translates to Chicago, as it could be based more on personnel. Kyler Gordon is a really good blitzer, so maybe Allen wants to lean into that like Eberflus did, but we have seen above that he puts more safeties on the field than Eberflus, so it’s highly possible that translates to more safeties blitzing as well.

Slightly more stunting

One other thing to note is how frequently the defensive line stunts, or has 2 defensive linemen exchange rush lanes. Data on this is less publicly available, but I was able to find it from PFF for all of 2023 and the first 5 weeks of 2024. That data is shown in the table below.

Here you can see that both Eberflus and Allen like to stunt more than average, though Allen generally stunts at a slightly higher rate. Given that he doesn’t blitz a ton and the Bears don’t have a great collection of pass rushers, I anticipate that continuing to Chicago. The Bears finished 2024 generating a pressure on almost 49% of their stunt rushes, the 4th highest mark in the NFL, and I will be curious to see if that success continues in 2024. They generated a pressure on only 34% of stunts in 2023, the worst mark in the NFL, so I don’t think it was an Eberflus stat, but I’m not sure how much of it was personnel-driven vs. small sample size fluke.

Lessons Learned

Here’s a nice, quick summary of the main takeaways from today’s article about what should stay the same vs. change from Eberflus to Allen:

Same: replace a DT with a DE on passing downs, not much blitzing, lots of stunts
Different: about twice as much man coverage, more even mix of cover 2/cover 3 in zone, more dime looks (more CB/S and fewer LB on the field on passing downs).

Overall, we should see a more diverse defense than Eberflus’ fairly standard approach of the last 3 years, and I am excited to see how that works with Chicago’s personnel.

5 Plays from Training Camp to Get You Excited for the ‘25 Season

2025-08-02T17:00:00-05:00

Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Sarah DeNicolo highlights five plays from Bears training camp to get you pumped and what you might expect for the upcoming season.

The Chicago Bears’ training camp has been a mixed bag so far. This comes as no surprise with all of the changes that the team has made this offseason. While we have to wait until the season starts to see how those changes play out, there have been a lot of promising practices, pressers, and plays that have come out of training camp so far.

As training camp continues, here are five plays that will get you riled up for this team’s upcoming season.

1. Caleb Williams’ Dime to Rome Odunze

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Williams drops one right in the bread basket to Odunze. Year two of this connection is one to get hyped about. In 2024, almost a quarter of Williams’ targets were to Odunze. As they both enter their sophomore year, their chemistry will only continue to build.

2. “Takeaway T.J.”

TJ Edwards needs to be a pro bowler this year pic.twitter.com/FQ5gW1nTcj
— Just Another Year Chicago: Bears (@JAYChi_Bears) July 25, 2025

Although Edwards missed OTAs due to a soft tissue injury, he has since recovered and has been participating in camp. In April 2025, the Bears extended Edwards, signing him to a two-year, $20 million contract.

In the 2024 season, Edwards consistently produced for the Bears’ defense, recording 129 total tackles, 79 of which were solo tackles, four sacks, and 12 tackles for loss. The entire Bears’ defensive unit, including “Takeaway T.J.”, is expected to be a strong one under new Defensive Coordinator Dennis Allen.

In a press conference on Thursday, Head Coach Ben Johnson lauded Allen as a “guy that’s not going to show any mercy,” noting that “the defense has had the upper hand on the offense for the most part of camp.”

3. Caleb Connects with Olamide Zaccheaus

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Williams and the Bears’ new wide receiver, Olamide Zaccheaus, connect on a deep ball in camp. The Bears signed Zaccheaus on a one-year deal back during free agency this offseason, providing Williams with an additional weapon and adding depth to the roster. He most recently played for the Washington Commanders.

Zaccheaus claimed his strength is providing leadership in the locker room. He wants to help “build a culture” for the Bears, per Marquee Sports Network.

Zaccheaus is expected to be the WR3 for the Bears this season. He can also be valuable off the field as he can be a mentor the younger talent on the team, positively influence the locker room culture, and show the team what it takes to get to the NFC Championship.

As training camp continues, ideally Zaccheaus and Williams will continue to build chemistry.

4. WR DJ Moore Taking Reps at Running Back

DJ Moore is about to go off this year!! ⬇️ IDGAF what you think or say about #2️⃣ pic.twitter.com/PHoncZQ9Cu
— MonstaOfDaTriState (@scar179nyc) July 30, 2025

Johnson has been testing out Moore in the backfield during training camp as Johnson sees him as a dynamic player. Throughout his career, Moore has consistently ranked highly in Yards After Catch (YAC) among wide receivers. According to Fox Sports Receiving Stats for 2024, Moore ranked 6th in YAC among wide receivers, recording 588 yards after catch and averaging 6.3 yards after catch per reception. Moore becomes a threat to gain positive yards whenever he gets the ball in his hands.

Per CBS Sports, Johnson noted that Moore has been receptive to the idea of playing running back, pointing out that Moore has always been the “just-get-me-the-ball type of guy.” Experimenting with Moore as a running back creates more opportunities for Johnson to get him the ball.

While the team did not address the running back position until the 7th round of the 2025 draft, this might be a creative alternative.

5. Revamped Offensive Line Building Chemistry

Bears O-line looked great here

Gave Caleb plenty of time to review his targets and hit an open DJ Moore

O-line stock is pic.twitter.com/LwfKxHv01M
— Just Another Year Chicago: Bears (@JAYChi_Bears) July 29, 2025

Last but certainly not least has been the snippets we’ve seen out of camp so far of this revamped offensive line. Williams was sacked a total of 68 times last season, placing him as the third-highest sacked quarterback in a single season in NFL history. While not every sack Williams took was at the fault of the OL, it was still imperative for the Bears to upgrade that position group in the offseason.

By adding veterans Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson, and Drew Dalman and drafting rookie Ozzy Trapilo, they accomplished just that.

While it certainly takes time for a new offensive line to gel, what we’ve seen from this new unit up to this point is encouraging.

What have you seen from the Bears training camp that excites you for the ‘25 season?

2026 NFL Draft: Top 75 prospect rankings with player superlatives

2025-08-02T15:00:00-05:00

Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

WCG’s lead draft analyst shares his top 75 prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft with some additional analysis.

The dead period of the NFL offseason is over, and we’re in the midst of training camp, which means the regular season is right around the corner. The Chicago Bears will have plenty to keep us busy here at Windy City Gridiron, which means there’s less time for our summer activities.

For me, one of my go-to summer activities to kill time is watching prospects for next year’s NFL Draft. As of this writing, I’ve been able to scout and grade 200 prospects for the 2026 class. That’s obviously not enough to get through every single player selected in the draft, which is my ultimate goal.

However, I have nine more months to add more prospects to my board. Off the sample I have now, I have a decent understanding of what the draft class offers in terms of its strengths and weaknesses going into the regular season. I’ve decided to share my findings with you all.

You can see the entirety of my big board edited in real life on my Patreon, as well as my full watchlist of players I still need to get to. I’ll also have exclusive Bears content there, as well. But I wanted to share my top 75 prospects on my big board for the 2026 NFL Draft. Additionally, I created some superlatives at each position to provide additional insight into what these prospects specialize in.

Quarterbacks

Strongest arm: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
Most athletic: LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina
Most accurate: Cade Klubnik, Clemson
Most well-rounded: Arch Manning, Texas
Highest ceiling: LaNorris Sellers
Highest floor: Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
Biggest question mark: Arch Manning
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Sam Leavitt, Arizona State

Running backs

Best vision: Makhi Hughes, Tulane
Best agility: Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame
Best power: Jonah Coleman, Washington
Fastest back: Tre Wisner, Texas
Best pass blocker: CJ Baxter, Texas
Highest ceiling: Jeremiyah Love
Highest floor: Jeremiyah Love
Biggest question mark: Justice Haynes, Michigan
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Jamarion Miller, Alabama

Wide receivers

Best hands: Elijah Sarratt, Indiana
Best route runner: Antonio Williams, Clemson
Most physical: Ja’Kobi Lane, USC
Best YAC receiver: Zachariah Branch, Georgia
Craftiest release package: Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State
Highest ceiling: Carnell Tate, Ohio State
Highest floor: Jordyn Tyson
Biggest question mark: Nyck Harbor, South Carolina
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Bryce Lance, North Dakota State

Tight ends

Best route runner: Kenyon Sadiq, Oregon
Most athletic: Kenyon Sadiq
Best hands: Luke Hasz, Ole Miss
Best blocker: Tanner Koziol, Houston
Highest ceiling: Kenyon Sadiq
Highest floor: Max Klare, Ohio State
Biggest question mark: Kenyon Sadiq
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Brett Norfleet, Missouri

Offensive tackles

Best hand usage: Spencer Fano, Utah
Most athletic: Trevor Goosby, Texas
Strongest blocker: Francis Mauigoa, Miami (FL)
Most physically gifted: Kadyn Proctor, Alabama
Best pad level: Spencer Fano
Highest ceiling: Kadyn Proctor
Highest floor: Francis Mauigoa
Biggest question mark: Isaiah World, Oregon
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Trevor Goosby

Interior offensive line

Best hand usage: Drew Shelton, Penn State
Most athletic: Connor Lew, Auburn
Strongest blocker: Jaeden Roberts, Alabama
Most physically gifted: Charles Jagusah, Notre Dame
Best pad level: Davion Carter, Texas Tech
Highest ceiling: Cayden Green, Missouri
Highest floor: Ar’maj Reed-Adams, Texas A&M
Biggest question mark: Charles Jagusah
Player outside the top 75 to watch: DJ Campbell, Texas

Defensive line

Quickest off the ball: Zane Durant, Penn State
Best two-gapper: Tim Keenan III, Alabama
Best hand usage: Peter Woods, Clemson
Best pass rusher: Gracen Halton, Oklahoma
Highest ceiling: Caleb Banks, Florida
Highest floor: Peter Woods
Biggest question mark: Christen Miller, Georgia
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Lee Hunter, Texas Tech

Edge rushers

Quickest off the ball: Damon Wilson II, Missouri
Best hand usage: TJ Parker, Clemson
Best at setting the edge: Rueben Bain Jr., Miami (FL)
Best power rusher: Keldric Faulk, Auburn
Highest ceiling: Rueben Bain Jr.
Highest floor: TJ Parker
Biggest question mark: Cashius Howell, Texas A&M
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Damon Wilson II

Linebackers

Best instincts: Whit Weeks, LSU
Most reliable tackler: CJ Allen, Georgia
Most athletic: Suntarine Perkins, Ole Miss
Best in coverage: Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh
Best blitzer: Anthony Hill Jr., Texas
Highest ceiling: Anthony Hill Jr.
Highest floor: CJ Allen
Biggest question mark: Harold Perkins Jr., LSU
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Whit Weeks

Cornerbacks

Best instincts in coverage: Avieon Terrell, Clemson
Most physical: Will Lee III, Texas A&M
Most athletic: D’Angelo Ponds, Indiana
Best ball skills: Jermod McCoy, Tennessee
Best tackler: DJ McKinney, Colorado
Highest ceiling: Avieon Terrell
Highest floor: Jermod McCoy
Biggest question mark: Josh Moten, Southern Miss
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Chandler Rivers, Duke

Safeties

Rangiest in coverage: Caleb Downs, Ohio State
Most athletic: Jalon Kilgore, South Carolina
Best tackler: Keon Sabb, Alabama
Best instincts: Caleb Downs
Best ball skills: Dillon Thieneman, Oregon
Highest ceiling: Caleb Downs
Highest floor: Caleb Downs
Biggest question mark: Jalen Catalon, Missouri
Player outside the top 75 to watch: Amare Ferrell, Indiana