Bucky Brooks Ships Impactful Defender to the Bears in His First Mock Draft

The plugged-in NFL draft analyst thinks the Bears will beef up the trenches in round one.

Mar 2, 2023; Indianapolis, IN, USA; NFL Network analyst Buck Brooks during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Bears desperately need to inject some talent into the defensive side of the ball this offseason. While they were highly opportunistic (they led the league with 33 takeaways), they also finished in the bottom ten in yards allowed, points allowed, and sacks.

While the struggles in their secondary can be pinned to the health (or lack thereof) of some of their top defenders, the same cannot be said for their defensive line. They were consistently poor for much of the year.

It should come as no surprise that the defensive line position has been pinpointed as Chicago's biggest weakness entering the offseason. They've been a popular landing spot for some of the best big men the 2026 NFL Draft has to offer.

NFL draft analyst Bucky Brooks is following that same logic in his inaugural mock draft of the 2026 season. He has them picking Ohio State defensive tackle Kayden McDonald with the 25th pick.

Beefing up the interior will help coordinator Dennis Allen improve a porous run defense that ranked 29th in rushing yards allowed per carry (5.0) in 2025. McDonald's disruptive presence as a supersized defensive tackle could quickly help the Bears solve their biggest defensive problem.

Bucky Brooks, NFL.com

I'm honestly not surprised that Brooks is prioritizing the defensive tackle position. While they struggled to get consistent pass-rush out of their edge rushers, their big men were arguably an even more glaring weakness (especially after Austin Booker returned to the lineup). Gervon Dexter Sr. has shown flashes, but they've come through waves of excruciatingly average play. Grady Jarrett may be a valuable defensive leader, but his best days are far behind him. Andrew Billings is a pending free agent and Chicago's back is against the wall when it comes to their available cap space.

They specifically struggled to slow down opposing rushing attacks (they ranked 27th with 134.5 yards allowed per game), and the defensive tackle position only accounted for 9.5 sacks. McDonald might not make too much of an impact in the latter category right away, but he will immediately shore up their rush defense.

The six-foot-three, 326 lb. beast was a force in the middle of Ohio State's defense. He's one of the best run stuffers in the entire class.

While I personally would like to see them add an edge rusher in the first round (I've always thought Dayo Odeyingbo would be a better fit rushing from the inside, and they're locked into his contract for 2026) and address the defensive tackle spot later on, I can't find any fault with grabbing the penetrating big man if he's on the board at 25.

It may not be flashy, but adding McDonald to the defensive line would go a long way in shoring up their biggest weakness on the defensive side of the ball.

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