Bears depth chart projection: How the new draft picks change the picture (2024)

Ryan Poles found starters at cornerback and safety in Round 2, he added a speedy, versatile weapon for the offense (and return game) in Round 3, and then loaded up on offensive linemen in Rounds 5-6.

Even though Poles was able to turn six picks into 11 in his first draft as Bears general manager, the overall talent on the roster is still lacking. There’s room for veteran additions at several positions, while other spots, like safety and running back, seem close to being set.

“The beautiful thing is that we have rookie minicamp coming up this week and we’ll get to see a lot of these players out running around,” Poles said Saturday night when asked about the Bears’ wide receivers. He didn’t rule out adding to the group. “We’ll just keep self-evaluating. If that’s the route we need to go, then we will. If we feel comfortable with our group, then we’re still going to look for talent; we always do. But we’ll just kind of take it one phase at a time.”

With the 11 draft picks and the reported undrafted rookie signings as of Sunday morning, here’s an updated look at the Bears’ depth chart, as we get a sense of where help is still needed and what will be the top position battles of training camp.

Undrafted rookie signings are unofficial, and the below depth chart has more than 90 players, which means cuts are coming. We will update after roster changes are announced.

* — denotes 2022 draft pick.

Quarterbacks

Justin Fields, Trevor Siemian, Ryan Willis

The Bears didn’t draft a quarterback, which comes as no surprise. Their resources need to be dedicated to Fields and his development in Year 2. That probably explains, too, why — as of this writing — they haven’t brought in an undrafted rookie at quarterback, either. Willis is probably destined for the practice squad. The Bears have too many holes to keep three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.

Running backs

David Montgomery, Khalil Herbert, Darrynton Evans, Treston Ebner*, Khari Blasingame (fullback)

Undrafted free agent: Master Teague

Coming into the NFL with the pass-catching and special-teams abilities, Ebner has the skill set that should create a competition right away with Evans for the No. 3 running back spot. His versatility could allow the Bears to keep four backs, too. Teague will enter rookie minicamp as one of the bigger “names” among the undrafted group. He was always the No. 2 in Columbus but has notable athletic traits — Teague weighs 221 pounds and ran a 4.44 40 at his pro day. He’ll have to prove himself on special teams to warrant consideration for the roster.

Wide receivers

WR1: Darnell Mooney, David Moore, Isaiah Coulter

WR2: Byron Pringle, Velus Jones Jr.*, Dazz Newsome

WR3: Equanimeous St. Brown, Nsimba Webster

UDFAs: Cyrus Holder (Duquesne), Landon Lenoir (Southern Illinois), Henry Litwin (Slippery Rock), Savon Scarver (Utah State), Kevin Shaa (Liberty)

The Bears probably hope to see Jones emerge as a starter, considering he was a third-round pick compared with a pair of veterans on one-year deals. His position flexibility should give offensive coordinator Luke Getsy some options.

This still looks like one of the thinner wide receiver groups in the league after Poles did not select another wideout. There’s a big drop-off in talent after Mooney, with a lot of hope that Pringle and St. Brown take advantage of their opportunities in Chicago.

As is often the case, several wide receivers signed after the draft. Scarver was Dane Brugler’s 55th-ranked receiver. He is another special teams option, having tied the NCAA and Mountain West record with seven career kickoff-return touchdowns. Lenoir played his high school ball at Crete-Monee and led the Salukis last season with 61 catches for 876 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Tight ends

Cole Kmet, Ryan Griffin, James O’Shaughnessy, Jesper Horsted

UDFAs: Chase Allen (Iowa State), Jake Tonges (California)

Veterans Griffin and O’Shaughnessy add experience to this group, and guys who can block. This could be the four on the roster on Day 1, with special teams being a priority. Like receiver, it’s a bit of a thin group, one that will be relying heavily on Kmet to lead the way.

There should be room for an undrafted rookie to compete for the final spot, especially if he can be effective on special teams. Allen was Brugler’s 21st-ranked tight end. He was second-team All-Big 12 each of the past three seasons.

More swings at the fences: Bears shift approach to the draft with Ryan Poles https://t.co/3XDzKb5RNV

— The Athletic Chicago (@TheAthleticCHI) May 1, 2022

Offensive linemen

Left tackle: Larry Borom, Braxton Jones*, Julién Davenport, Tyrone Wheatley Jr.

Left guard: Cody Whitehair, Willie Wright

Center: Lucas Patrick, Sam Mustipher, Doug Kramer*, Dieter Eiselen

Right guard: Sam Mustipher, Dakota Dozier, Zach Thomas*, Ja’Tyre Carter*

Right tackle: Teven Jenkins, Lachavious Simmons

UDFAs: Jean Delance (Florida), Tristen Taylor (Eastern Washington)

The focus on Day 3 of the draft was the offensive line, as Poles selected four players there. It was the prime example of taking multiple swings with the hope that one or two could be late-round gems, and it’s at the position Poles knows best. If Jones is slotted on the left side, he could certainly compete with Borom for a starting job, but that’s still a position where a veteran could be added. Davenport might also get a crack depending on how he performs this spring. He has the most NFL experience of any tackle on the roster, though that’s a low bar.

We’ll have to wait and see where the Bears line up Thomas, who played right tackle in 2019-20 and then left tackle last season, when he was first-team all-conference for San Diego State. He has also played guard. The main competition for Thomas, Kramer and Carter to making the roster will be Mustipher and Dozier. Right guard remains a major hole, so a veteran could be signed there in the coming weeks.

The four late-round picks will make it much tougher for an undrafted player to even make the practice squad.

Defensive linemen

DE: Al-Quadin Muhammad, Trevis Gipson, Sam Kamara, Ladarius Mack

DL3T: Justin Jones, Mario Edwards Jr., Auzoyah Alufohai

DL1T: Angelo Blackson, Khyiris Tonga, LaCale London

DE: Robert Quinn, Dominique Robinson*, Jeremiah Attaochu, Charles Snowden

UDFA: Micah Dew-Treadway (Minnesota)

One of the bigger surprises was that the Bears didn’t draft an interior defensive lineman considering the importance of the three-technique to coach Matt Eberflus’ defense. That’s good news for veteran holdovers Blackson and Edwards. Robinson should be able to carve out a role as a situational pass rusher as he continues to develop at what is a very new position for him. Learning from Quinn and Muhammad will be a benefit.

Linebackers

LB: Roquan Smith, Caleb Johnson

LB: Nicholas Morrow, Noah Dawkins

LB: Matthew Adams, Joe Thomas

UDFAs: Christian Albright (Ball State), Jaylen Alexander (Purdue), C.J. Avery (Louisville), Jack Sanborn (Wisconsin)

The draft results reflect a lot of confidence the staff has in Morrow being able to hold down the starting job next to Smith at linebacker. It was only a minicamp in April, but one thing that stood out was Morrow’s speed, which has been his calling card in the NFL. Eberflus said the strongside linebacker spot rarely plays in this defense, but it’s still a question mark as to who will handle that role.

Sanborn, a Lake Zurich High School alumnus, is the top-rated undrafted rookie — Brugler projected him as a sixth- or seventh-round pick, and he was 191st on the Consensus Big Board. Last season, Sanborn had 16 tackles for loss. Looking at the depth chart, he definitely has a route to make the roster.

Five takeaways from Bears’ 2022 NFL Draft: Best picks, trades backs and helping Justin Fields https://t.co/kHte2VKP5b

— The Athletic Chicago (@TheAthleticCHI) May 1, 2022

Cornerbacks

CB1: Jaylon Johnson, Thomas Graham Jr., Lamar Jackson, BoPete Keyes

CB2: Kyler Gordon*, Kindle Vildor, Greg Stroman Jr.

NCB: Tavon Young, Duke Shelley

UDFAs: Derick Bush (Coastal Carolina), Allie Green IV (Missouri), Dishon McNary (Central Michigan)

The first pick of the Poles era slots in as a Week 1 starting cornerback. We’ll see if Gordon becomes a nickel, but he seems situated now to start opposite Johnson. There is still room to add more depth, especially inside. This position seems to be the most likely to get an influx of veterans between now and training camp, unless the new staff is comfortable with Vildor, Graham and Shelley as the second-team cornerbacks.

Safeties

FS: Eddie Jackson, DeAndre Houston-Carson, Elijah Hicks*, Michael Joseph

SS: Jaquan Brisker*, Dane Cruikshank

UDFAs: Jonathan Alexander (Charlotte), Amari Carter (Miami, Fla.), Jaylon Jones (Ole Miss)

Poles surprised many with his selection of Brisker, but looking at the depth chart, there was an obvious opening next to Jackson. If Jackson can return to his playmaking ways in Eberflus’ defense, the Bears could be in really good shape at safety. This could turn out to be one of the deeper positions because of the addition of Brisker, the free-agent signing of Cruikshank and the return of a versatile player in Houston-Carson. Then there’s Hicks, the seventh-round pick, who played in 54 games with 46 starts at Cal and had five career interceptions and 14.5 tackles for loss.

Special teams

Kicker: Cairo Santos

Punter: Trenton Gill*, Ryan Winslow

Long snapper: Patrick Scales

Kick returner: Khalil Herbert, Velus Jones Jr.*, Trestan Ebner*

Punt returner: Trestan Ebner*, Dazz Newsome

Get ready for a punter competition! As a draft pick, Gill should have a leg up on Winslow — if you’re going to use a draft pick on a punter, you’d like him to be your punter for the next decade, like Pat O’Donnell was. Then again, Gill was the 255th pick of the draft, not necessarily someone who requires a roster spot.

Jones and Ebner, along with Scarver, the undrafted rookie, should create quite the competition at kick returner. Herbert did a nice job last year, but as the backup running back, they might want to take off his plate. If Jones’ role increases at receiver, that could open the door for Ebner to make the roster as the main return man. Ebner had 19 punt returns last year, so he could factor in that competition as well. The Bears have to find some core special teamers, so we’ll be keeping an eye on the rookies who can prove themselves as returners or coverage players as we get closer to projecting the 53-man roster.

(Top photo of Kyler Gordon: Ted S. Warren / Associated Press)