Bear Digest

Details of Chicago Bears' 2025 NFL Draft trade offer to New England Patriots revealed

The Chicago Bears tried to trade up for Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson. Now we know what they offered the New England Patriots.
Bryan Perez|
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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The Chicago Bears attempted to trade up one spot in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft to select former Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson, but the New England Patriots opted instead to keep their pick, No. 38 overall, and use it on the all-purpose runner.

Now we know exactly what GM Ryan Poles offered the Patriots in his effort to land the running back who was often compared to Detroit Lions star Jahmyr Gibbs during the run-up to the draft.

And it's no wonder why the Patriots declined.

Poles offered the No. 39 and a seventh-round pick to New England for No. 38, a proposal that was easy for New England to wag their finger at.

Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai (25) runs with the ball during the Rookie Minicamp
Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Chicago Bears did just fine at running back in the 2025 NFL Draft

Sure, Henderson would've been a headline-grabbing name if the Bears landed him in the second round, but the combination of Luther Burden III, who they selected at No. 39, and former Rutgers star Kyle Monangai, who enjoyed similar success as Henderson in the Big 10, may end up doing more for the Chicago Bears' offense than had they only landed the former Buckeye.

Monangai has more of a complementary skill set to D'Andre Swift than Henderson, who profiles as a home run hitter, which is Swift's current role in Chicago's offense. Meanwhile, Monangai runs with more between-the-tackles power, and, despite his average size, can wear defenses down as a game goes on.

Indeed, Monangai has a tough road ahead to go from a seventh-round pick to a productive starting running back in the NFL, one that will be littered with more obstacles than Henderson's. But he's proven to be a hard-nosed runner who has the traits the Bears were lacking in their running game in 2024. If he answers the call, Poles will end up being thankful that his trade offer was rejected by the Patriots.

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Bryan Perez
BRYAN PEREZ

Bryan Perez founded and operated Bears Talk, a Chicago sports blog. Prior to that, he covered the Bears for USA Today’s Bears Wire and NBC Sports Chicago. In addition to his Chicago Bears coverage, Perez is a respected member of NFL Draft media and was a past winner of The Huddle's Mock Draft competition. Bryan's past life includes time as a Northeast scout for the CFL's Ottawa Redblacks.

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