Kayden McDonald Emerging as Bears' Top Choice to Fill Weak Defensive Interior

Based on the latest buzz, Kayden McDonald looks to be the DT1 and best option for the Chicago Bears if they take a defensive tackle early.

Ohio State Buckeyes defensive lineman Kayden McDonald. | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

If the Chicago Bears take a defensive tackle with their first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the two most likely options are Kayden McDonald and Peter Woods.

Both players are widely viewed as the top defensive tackles in this year's class, but who the Bears prefer between the two remains to be seen.

But we might have a better idea of where Chicago stands on Woods and McDonald after some insight from a trio of ESPN analysts, all of whom are hearing that McDonald, not Woods, figures to be the first defensive tackle off the board.

Kayden McDonald expected to be DT1

Ohio State Buckeyes defensive tackle Kayden McDonald. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When asked who would be the first defensive tackle off the board, ESPN's Field Yates, Matt Miller and Jordan Reid all said McDonald, even though not all of them have McDonald ranked as their own DT1 on their draft boards.

Miller says he doesn't have Woods or McDonald in his top 40, but the "word around the league" is McDonald will go first. Miller adds McDonald does have a chance to go in Round 1.

Reid says that McDonald has "been the most consistent defensive tackle" in the class, and being healthy has helped, also. Reid suggests McDonald will go inside the top 40.

When you add in the fact that McDonald said earlier in the pre-draft process that he gets the feeling he's the Bears' "No. 1 guy," it's not hard to connect the dots to McDonald being Chicago's top choice over Woods.

What happened to Peter Woods?

Clemson defensive lineman Peter Woods. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Once viewed as a potential top-10 pick late last year, Woods has seen his stock fall considerably.

Part of the reason is Woods had a down year, with the Clemson product going from 8.5 tackles for loss and three sacks in 2024, to 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks in 2025. Pro Football Focus even showed Woods' down season, as he went from grades of 87.2 overall, 73.8 in the pass-rush and 87.0 in run defense to 72.5 overall, 74.2 in run defense and 65.4 in the pass-rush.

Woods needed to have an impressive pre-draft process, but that did not happen. He didn't work out at the combine and his Pro Day was cut short due to injury.

Essentially Sports' Tony Pauline moved Woods from No. 18 on his big board all the way down to No. 30.

"After not working out at the combine, where he measured 6-foot-2.5 and 298 pounds, Woods ran two 10-yard splits during pro day (timing a best of 1.67 seconds) and never completed the 40 due to an alleged left hamstring strain," Pauline wrote. "He also touched 29 inches in the vertical jump, a number that certainly does not put him in the category of 'big and athletic."

Reid also chimed in on Woods, saying the Clemson tackle had hurt his stock to the point he has "an early-to-mid second-round mark" from most teams.

Why Kayden McDonald fits with Bears

Ohio State Buckeyes defensive tackle Kayden McDonald. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Bears sported the sixth-worst run defense in the NFL last year and that needs to change. While the Bears would love an interior defender who can stop the run and rush the passer, those guys simply don't seem to exist in this class.

That said, McDonald is the best of the best run defenders in the draft. His 92.0 PFF run defense grade for Ohio State last season was tops in the nation, he posted nine tackles for loss and 7 tackles for no gain and finished with 30 run stops.

McDonald did show some improvement as a pass-rusher in 2025, going from zero sacks the previous two years, to three last season.

A trade-back opportunity

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles. | David Banks-Imagn Images

If the Bears have their sights set on McDonald, who seemingly is a fringe first-round pick at this point, it presents an opportunity for them to trade back.

Chicago should consider doing so, as the Bears need to make up for the massive gap it has between their fourth-round pick and seventh-round selections.

The Bears could trade back a handful of spots, or maybe even as far as the top of the second round (keep an eye on the Arizona Cardinals) and still land McDonald.