Having 4 picks in the top 89 and not getting Edge or DT should be a fireable offense for Poles and the scouting staff. Unacceptable.

As fans we think they need DL, edge prospects , and a S. A LT and center. They know what they have and what they wanted. This drafting team killed the draft last year. Lets give them some Kudos on they know what they are doing.

All of this will pass and this year we will go to the SB and look back and say how smart they were. (hopefully)

Pretty disappointed with Day 2 on paper. You had two 2nd round picks and a third and might not have gotten a starter this year.

• I like Jones but this was a deep C draft and feel like you could have gotten him or a comparable player later. He better become a solid starter sooner than later.

• Like most Roush wasn’t on my radar. You take a 3rd TE when you don’t have a consistent pass rush or a dependable #2 CB? You can get a decent Y TE off the scrap heap. I probably shouldn’t doubt this scouting group on a TE after last year, but it’s hard not to.

• Thomas better be more Tyreek Hill than Velus Jones. And you better hope Burden and Odunze sat healthy because if one of them goes down, Thomas doesn’t seem like the kind of WR you can plug in outside. I’m sure Ben has a plan for him. But there’s plenty of other speedy receivers with better production than this guy and plenty of guys with inside/outside versatility available.

I’m sure there will be some picks tomorrow I end up liking more and it’s clear this team has their own way of evaluating players that doesn’t mesh with a lot of other people’s. That’s great if it works and you stay on top. Poles is drafting like a team that thinks it has starters everywhere. I hope that’s true. Because if we get into the season and suddenly the DL isn’t getting it done and a CB goes down and depth is shaky, he had opportunities this draft to address that and so far he hasn’t. I guess it’s the same thing I’ve often found myself saying after a Bears draft - “I hope they know what they’re doing.”

1 hour ago, adam said:

Having 4 picks in the top 89 and not getting Edge or DT should be a fireable offense for Poles and the scouting staff. Unacceptable.

its bizarre, BUT I would have been good with Dani Dennis-Sutton, Joshua Josephs, Mason Reiger and Ndame Tucker in the 3rd, and all four are still on the board. If we pick one of these guys, especially one of the first two, or at least they are there and we choose whichever Edge player, then Im gonna say that the Bears played the board and won.

But its a huge risk. Let's see what tomorrow brings.

And after that, let's see what might come in free agency. For example IF (if if) they sign Cam Jordan, or trade for Max Crosby or something then Im going to understand that they didnt like the options they had in the draft, for example.

But if the roster as it is now, and this is what we roll with on the DL opening day, then something is very wrong. The current group just doesnt fit the rest of the team.

As to Roush, the writing is on the wall for Kmet.

8 minutes ago, BearFan PHX said:

As to Roush, the writing is on the wall for Kmet.

didn't we JUST have him renegotiate his contract so we could get more cap space? yea, sure as f' makes sense to me.

15 minutes ago, BearFan PHX said:

As to Roush, the writing is on the wall for Kmet.

The Bears needed a TE to replace Smythe and Roush will be doing a lot of blocking to start, so I think Kmet is safe for now. His contract expires after 2027 so he probably gets traded after this year and Roush steps in his role.

3 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

The Bears needed a TE to replace Smythe and Roush will be doing a lot of blocking to start, so I think Kmet is safe for now. His contract expires after 2027 so he probably gets traded after this year and Roush steps in his role.

Right. Im not saying Kmet is going to be traded right now, he might be, but even if he isnt, he wont be here longer than this year. Maybe gone at the trade deadline if not this offseason?

Im saying the writing is on the wall meaning, youre on your way out one way or another. It's certainly going to affect Kmets targets.

3 minutes ago, BearFan PHX said:

Right. Im not saying Kmet is going to be traded right now, he might be, but even if he isnt, he wont be here longer than this year. Maybe gone at the trade deadline if not this offseason?

Im saying the writing is on the wall meaning, youre on your way out one way or another. It's certainly going to affect Kmets targets.

He was here into most of his 2nd contract. They can keep him, but at TE #3 value or the Bears trade him.

3 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

He was here into most of his 2nd contract. They can keep him, but at TE #3 value or the Bears trade him.

I think it actually costs us cap space to trade him right now, so unless we are getting monster value for him, I think he probably sticks around this year. Im just saying, with the drafting of Roush, Kmets future is shrinking with us. His targets will decrease, his role will get smaller as Roush comes on. Johnson said "I know I have Kmet, but I want this guy in the 3rd round." so that's not great for Kmet, one way or another.

I think Roush is better than Kmet?

4 minutes ago, BearFan PHX said:

I think it actually costs us cap space to trade him right now, so unless we are getting monster value for him, I think he probably sticks around this year. Im just saying, with the drafting of Roush, Kmets future is shrinking with us. His targets will decrease, his role will get smaller as Roush comes on. Johnson said "I know I have Kmet, but I want this guy in the 3rd round." so that's not great for Kmet, one way or another.

I think Roush is better than Kmet?

Not this year, but future...Roush should be as good as Kmet or better TE. His size and athletic ability is just insane, has smarts to go to Stanford. I bet he took education seriously though with NIL that has changed.

7 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

Not this year, but future...Roush should be as good as Kmet or better TE. His size and athletic ability is just insane, has smarts to go to Stanford. I bet he took education seriously though with NIL that has changed.

I think by midseason, he will be ahead of Kmet. Thats my guess. Maybe sooner.

13 minutes ago, BearFan PHX said:

I think by midseason, he will be ahead of Kmet. Thats my guess. Maybe sooner.

Maybe, he has a steady improvement scale going year to year. I think the Bears feel they can develop and feature him unlike what Stanford did.

Thieneman ) we needed a starting S and got the second best one in the draft.

Jones) we got side smacked when Dalman retired. So they went out and got the best option that fit their cap. Now they take a potential pro bowl type of center. They doubled down on a position DA values very highly. He only had one pressure last year and no sacks in the dominate Big 10

Roush) the third TE was a need, not at the top of the acquisition list but fills a spot BJ values. He is a killer blocker and that specialty play BJ likes. Instead of a OT receiver, they have a pass catcher. He has a 9.99 RAS score, 6'7" 270 lbs. that is another OT to help the LT spot where they didnt draft anyone.

Thomas) everyone projected a WR some where in the draft and here he is. What this is a returner with 4.28 speed. This adds a weapon for BJ and an upscale returner. He had 3 returns for TDs last year.

There are still names out there than can help us on the DL, more so at DT than edge. If we draft Dennis-Sutton, I would been happy at 57 and they picked him later. Depends on how the board drops. Halton, Proctor, Benny are DTs still out there that fit our scheme.

Im going to go back and look at our reactions last year and I suspect its the same as this year, WTF. It was our best draft in many yrs.

.

just how many TE's do we need??? how many WR's do we need???

how many of these fabulous 2nd day picks can we place on the field along with the starters we now have??

how many targets can our QB have on the field to pass the freaking ball to??

offense gets you to superbowls. good or better than good defenses to go along with it WINS superbowls.

if you keep drafting the same position guys in the money rounds you are neglecting team needs for a lopsided joke of a team. if the difference maker players you do need aren't there when you are slotted to pick, you move UP to draft them. we had 2 second round picks and a 3rd round pick. in a freaking WEAK draft you use these to move UP not down for lesser quality players you especially do NOT need. even backup CB's or LB's would have been better picks than third and fourth string TE's and WR's.

all in all we traded a starting GOOD+ wide receiver for a third string tight end who can maybe *block.

*wow, that is really a rare commodity that you should draft in the 2nd or 3rd round to get you over the hump in a superbowl run year.

cap relief? good teams can manage it. why can't we?

so, here is the NFL website evaluation day 2:

Analysis:

• The Bears sent DJ Moore and a fifth-rounder to the Bills for a second-round pick earlier this offseason, but they were able to recoup a fifth-rounder by trading down on Friday night. 

• Jones was my favorite center in the draft. He’s an athletic zone blocker who can anchor despite lacking ideal size.

• Roush met the Bears' need for a tight end who can block and be effective as a receiver, if he cuts down on drops. They took Thomas later in Round 3. He’s an after-the-catch threat like Luther Burden III, but Thomas isn’t the most natural pass catcher.

I think what fans forget is everything has to fall under the Cap. This isn't fantasy football with unlimited money. It doesn't have to make sense to us but they do what they think makes us a good team. I enjoyed 12 wins last year. If we have a losing season, I will bitch as loud as you guys but for now I'm going with the flow.

On 4/24/2026 at 11:20 PM, BearFan PHX said:

Right. Im not saying Kmet is going to be traded right now, he might be, but even if he isnt, he wont be here longer than this year. Maybe gone at the trade deadline if not this offseason?

Im saying the writing is on the wall meaning, youre on your way out one way or another. It's certainly going to affect Kmets targets.

Kmet is a better receiver than Roush, wider catch radius, better hands, etc. Roush is better at blocking and running and is more dangerous with the ball in his hands. I doubt Roush could make that game-tying TD catch Kmet made in the playoffs. However, after seeing how many snaps a nearly useless Dylan Smythe got last year it's very clear Ben wants 3 good TEs. That said I can see a future where we move on from Kmet to free up money. Which means I won't be surprised if we draft another TE next year.

On 4/24/2026 at 11:41 PM, BearFan PHX said:

I think by midseason, he will be ahead of Kmet. Thats my guess. Maybe sooner.

Highly doubtful in this complex offense. Aside from the extra demands from Ben's offense, rookie TEs always struggle to get up to speed in the NFL because there is so much to learn. Coleston Loveland was still learning things late into the season, and still missing assignments even into the playoffs. I won't mind if you're correct since it's means the offense will be in a great position.

The good thing here is that Roush is a legit receiving target and has far better YAC potential than Smythe (and Kmet). For sure by the second half of the season I expect Roush to be getting more targets than Smythe was seeing, and on running routes not the stop here and turn around college plays. Then teams won't be able to key off him in terms of knowing who is blocking and who is running a route.

Ben said it in the press conference when asked about how this helps the offense since we already had two good TEs: "We can go heavy or we can spread it out, however we choose to attack a defense."

I think now even the easy plays around the LOS become more productive because these 3 TEs can do so much in space. Jet sweeps and WR screens with Zavion on the field? Not that we have to do a lot of it, more so that we can do it depending on how a defense is playing us. We're going to be a very difficult offense to prepare for each week because of all the options. We just need Caleb to take the next step in quicker reads and quicker accurate releases to the right player. After seeing the progress across last season I think he'll get there.

17 minutes ago, AZ54 said:

Kmet is a better receiver than Roush, wider catch radius, better hands, etc. Roush is better at blocking and running and is more dangerous with the ball in his hands. I doubt Roush could make that game-tying TD catch Kmet made in the playoffs. However, after seeing how many snaps a nearly useless Dylan Smythe got last year it's very clear Ben wants 3 good TEs. That said I can see a future where we move on from Kmet to free up money. Which means I won't be surprised if we draft another TE next year.

Roush was reported by those covering the draft as having 7 drops his last year in college. SEVEN with far fewer targets than a #1 TE in the NFL would receive during the course of a season. And make no mistake. Just because we have an All-Pro-caliber TE in Loveland doesn't mean Kmet, when used properly, isn't still a Pro Bowl-caliber TE. When you run the number of 12- and 13-person formations that BJ calls, having a TE 1a & 1b is not a luxury; it is a necessity, if you want to have a Super Bowl caliber offense.

I hope the salary cap Gods allow us to keep Kmet a Bear!