Bears Could Still Add Pass Rusher; Team Was High On CB Colton Hood
The Bears entered the 2026 draft with a major pass rushing need, and our mock draft predicted Chicago would address that need in the first round. However, the team did not use any of its seven picks on a pass rusher, so as Albert Breer of SI.com writes, it would not be surprising to see the Bears fortify their Montez Sweat-fronted EDGE contingent with a veteran at some point in the near future.
There are still a number of recognizable names on the market, including players like Jadeveon Clowney, Cameron Jordan, Joey Bosa, Von Miller, and Haason Reddick. We recently heard Clowney is drawing interest, though it is presently unclear which teams are considering him. As Breer observes, Clowney fits the mold of the long, rugged pass rusher that Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen favors, and Jordan and Allen spent a number of years together with the Saints. Either of those players could be a fit for Chicago, even if (as Breer suggests) such a deal might not come together until we get closer to training camp.
Meanwhile, the team will continue to evaluate Dayo Odeyingbo, whose first season with the Bears was cut short by a torn Achilles. Through eight games in 2025, the former Colt recorded just one sack, and 2024 fifth-rounder Austin Booker – another key piece of Chicago’s pass rushing plans last season – missed time due to injury as well. Booker ultimately posted 4.5 sacks in 10 games, and the Bears tallied the fifth-fewest sacks in the league.
That led to the speculation that GM Ryan Poles would add a true pass rushing talent this offseason, but that has not happened yet (although Poles did at least explore the possibility of acquiring Maxx Crosby from the Raiders). Despite winning the NFC North and narrowly missing a trip to the NFC championship game in 2025, the Bears finished in the bottom-10 in terms of both total defense and scoring defense, so an established EDGE player or two would surely help spur another deep postseason run.
Poles did authorize eight-figure contracts for safety Coby Bryant and defensive tackle Neville Gallimore in free agency, and he further fortified those positions in the draft with S Dillon Thieneman (No. 25 overall) and DT Jordan van den Berg (No. 213). According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Bears believe they got a steal in both players, as they did not expect Thieneman to fall to them and think van den Berg was one of the most talented DTs in his class (his sixth-round status notwithstanding).
Fowler says Chicago was also interested in cornerback Colton Hood, whom the Giants selected with the No. 37 choice. If Thieneman was unavailable, as the Bears thought he would be, Hood may have been the selection at No. 25.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/8/26
Today’s rookie signings from around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- WR Zavion Thomas (third round, LSU)
- CB Malik Muhammad (fourth round, Texas)
- LB Keyshaun Elliott (fifth round, Arizona State)
- DT Jordan van den Berg (sixth round, Georgia Tech)
Cincinnati Bengals
- C Connor Lew (fourth round, Auburn)
- WR Colbie Young (fourth round, Georgia)
- T Brian Parker II (sixth round, Duke)
- TE Jack Endries (seventh round, Texas)
- DT Landon Robinson (seventh round, Navy)
Los Angeles Chargers
- T Travis Burke (fourth round, Memphis)
- S Genesis Smith (fourth round, Arizona)
- DT Nick Barrett (fifth round, South Carolina)
- G Logan Taylor (sixth round, Boston College)
- G Alex Harkey (sixth round, Oregon)
New England Patriots
- T Dametrious Crownover (sixth round, Texas A&M)
- LB Namdi Obiazor (sixth round, TCU)
- QB Behren Morton (seventh round, Texas Tech)
- RB Jam Miller (seventh round, Alabama)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- WR Kaden Wetjen (fourth round, Iowa)
- DE Gabriel Rubio (sixth round, Notre Dame)
- S Robert Spears-Jennings (seventh round, Oklahoma)
The Bears, Bengals, Chargers, and Steelers all broke the seals on signing their rookie classes today. Chicago only has to sign its three first-, second-, and third-round picks to complete the class, Los Angeles still has its three first-, second-, and fourth-rounders remaining, and Cincinnati has only two unsigned rookies from the second and third round.
Bears Trade Up For Bills’ 213th Overall Pick
The Bears have made a move to come up 26 spots to the back of the sixth round. They are sending pick Nos. 239 and 241 in the seventh round to the Bills to move up for Georgia Tech defensive tackle Jordan van den Berg. Van den Berg makes history today as the first ever South African-born player to be selected in the NFL Draft.
Chicago has had a versatile draft up to this point, addressing a different position group with each selection. With this trade up, the Bears have added depth on their defensive interior with a decent amount of potential. It’s been a long road for van den Berg, who began his path to the NFL through community college before landing in Happy Valley. After three years in rotation role on the defensive line at Penn State, van den Berg transferred to the Yellow Jackets for a starting opportunity.
Starting his time at Georgia Tech coming off the bench, van den Berg quickly outperformed his bench role and worked his way into the starting lineup by Week 6. In that first year in Atlanta, van den Berg started to show a knack for disruption with a sack and five tackles for loss. Given the opportunity to play as a full-time starter in 2025, he expanded that production, recording career highs in total tackles (44), sacks (3.0), and tackles for loss (11.0). He comes to the league with an NFL-ready frame but will need to work through some stiffness to be effective at the next level.
The Bears return Gervon Dexter and Grady Jarrett as likely starters on the interior defensive line and signed Neville Gallimore, Kentavius Street, and James Lynch in free agency to join last year’s second-round pick Shemar Turner and fill out the room. That’s a lot of bodies for van den Berg to move past on the depth chart, making it a difficult road to a spot on the 53-man roster. There may be a plan in place for van den Berg to end up on the practice squad to start his career, where he will be able to qualify for the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program and not count against the taxi squad’s 16-man limit.