Mel Kiper 2025 NFL Mock Draft: Chicago Bears add explosive weapons to support Caleb Williams

ESPN NFL Draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. published his latest two-round 2025 NFL Mock Draft, and it's a doozy for Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams and head coach Ben Johnson.

Kiper focuses on offensive skill players with two of the Bears' first three picks, kicking off at No. 10 overall with the selection of Penn State tight end, Tyler Warren.

"Landing Warren would give the second-year quarterback another reliable target," Kiper wrote. "New Bears coach Ben Johnson could line up Warren anywhere, get him the ball and let him roll to first downs after the catch. The versatile tight end had 1,233 receiving yards last season, and 700 of them came once the ball was in his hands."

It's an interesting strategy taken by Kiper, and one that could come to fruition if the 2025 NFL draft falls this way.

It's something of a worst-case scenario for the Bears. Will Campbell (LT, LSU), Armand Membou (OT, Missouri), and Ashton Jeanty (RB, Boise State) all get selected before the 10th pick, leaving Chicago to choose between Warren, who's arguably the best all-around player available, or running back Omarion Hampton, who Kiper has going to the Dallas Cowboys at No. 12 overall.

Warren makes sense in this projection because he offers the most immediate help for Caleb Williams. As the old adage goes, the best friend of any young quarterback is a playmaking tight end, and with the success that Brock Bowers had as a rookie with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2024, the Bears could look to recreate some of that magic in Chicago.

Mel Kiper Jr.'s mock draft flips to the defense at No. 39 overall, sending the Bears Walter Nolen (DL, Ole Miss).

"Signing Grady Jarrett to join Gervon Dexter Sr. on the interior of the defensive line helps," Kiper wrote. "But he's also turning 32 years old at the end of this month. In Nolen, the Bears could get another disruptive lineman who can get home on the quarterback. He had 6.5 sacks last season."

This narrative, the Bears selecting an interior defensive lineman in the second round, is building momentum as the 2025 NFL Draft approaches. It makes sense, considering Jarrett's age, as Kiper noted, and Billings' combination of age and recent injury history.

"Nolen has NFL-starting size but won’t blow you away with his physical traits," NFL.com's Lance Zierlein wrote of Nolen in his 2025 scouting report. "However, he gains quick advantages with his explosiveness into contact and ability to beat up blockers when singled up. He has the athletic talent to play into gaps but needs to play with better hands to keep himself clean at the point of attack. He wins as a rusher with his athleticism and play strength, and doesn’t need to be schemed for. The pass rush still requires refinement, but he already flashes quick-win moves that foreshadow good pressure and sack production as a pro. Nolen’s blend of explosiveness and playmaking talent create high upside as a three-down interior lineman."

Ohio State Buckeyes running back TreVeyon Henderson (32) scores a touchdown on a 75-yard touchdown catch — Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The most exciting pick of Mel Kiper's 2025 NFL mock draft is the last one, No. 41 overall, where he sends the Chicago Bears a new running back: TreVeyon Henderson, Ohio State.

Henderson has been tagged as the Jahmyr Gibbs of the 2025 NFL Draft, and while I think that's a bit too rich of a comp, the point remains: Henderson has speed for days and would instantly become the Bears' most explosive playmaker should he land in Chicago.

"One more finishing touch on the Bears' offense comes with their third pick in the top 41," Kiper wrote. "Chicago struggled to establish the run last season, averaging 4.0 yards per carry (27th) with D'Andre Swift and Roschon Johnson. Henderson could take some pressure off Caleb Williams by picking up first downs on the ground. He rushed for 42 scores and averaged 6.4 yards per carry over four seasons at Ohio State."

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