2025 NFL mock draft simulator reveals Bears fans' top 2 choices for first-round pick

Chicago Bears fans have been active users of Pro Football Focus' 2025 NFL mock draft simulator, and they aren't all-in on investing in the trenches in the first round.

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Chicago Bears fans know a thing or two about picking early in the first round of the NFL Draft. The Bears have selected in the top 11 picks nine times (including 2025) since 2015. So, yeah, Bears Nation knows all about running mock draft simulations.

In fact, Chicago Bears fans are the original mock draft simulator.

Fortunately, with the advent of AI and a bunch of incredible online resources, the mock draft simulation process has become really fun. One of the most popular mock draft simulators is run by analytics powerhouse Pro Football Focus, which recently shared data revealing the most popular selections made by each team's fan base.

And when it came to the Bears, the theory of 'trenches or bust' in 2025 seems like it's lost its mojo.

Instead, Chicago Bears fans are consistently targeting skill players in the first round.

Their first choice? Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. Second choice? Penn State tight end Tyler Warren.

Jeanty makes sense. He's a rare running back prospect, and after a year in which Saquon Barkley was the engine that drove the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl title, adding a running back with a top-10 pick seems more logical.

But, Warren? I've said on multiple occasions that I don't see any way Ryan Poles spends the 10th pick on a tight end just two seasons after signing Cole Kmet, who's only 26, to a four-year, $50 million contract. Sure, Warren is a stud. But there are more impactful players -- even if they're boring -- that the Bears could select at No. 10 than the Nittany Lion pass catcher.

See: Membou, Armand.

In PFF's latest mock draft, one that factored each team's top (and second) choices made by fans using their simulator, the Bears were blocked out of position to take either Jeanty or Warren, and instead had to settle for a backup plan: safety Malaki Starks (Georgia).

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"The Bears made several moves this offseason to improve their offense, but the fans wanted more with Jeanty or Warren," PFF's John Kosko wrote. "Unfortunately, they “settle” for Starks, PFF’s ninth-ranked prospect. Chicago struggled in the secondary in 2024 as Jaquan Brisker missed most of the season due to injury. Starks should be a reliable third safety and a sure tackler to mitigate the team's defensive weak links."

This feels similar to the Bears potentially using their first-round pick on a tight end. Yes, Starks is a talented prospect who is a plug-and-play starter in the NFL, but safety doesn't scream like enough of a need for Poles to draft one at No. 10.

Chicago Bears fans need to brace themselves for another offensive lineman joining the roster in the first round. It's no longer the popular strategy, based on mock draft simulator data, but it's a formula that Poles will likely stick with until he's 100 percent confident in his starting five.

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