One Question Facing the Chicago Bears' 10-Man Rookie Class Entering the Season

The Chicago Bears' scouting department deserves a hearty pat on the back this season. Rarely do you see a team coming off an 11-win campaign enter a season with ten rookies on the roster.

That's the position that the Bears find themselves in right now, though. Nearly one-fifth of the roster is entering their first season. Could that be a recipe for disaster? Under previous regimes, probably. The Bears' coaching staff deserves the benefit of the doubt, considering how last year's rookie class performed down the stretch.

Honestly, there's a major reason for optimism with the massive influx of young talent they added this offseason. They'll be counting on a few of them to play key roles early on. What is one question facing every member of the class this season?

Dillon Thieneman

How much can Dennis Allen put on Dillon Thieneman's plate?

The Bears initially had a great plan at safety. However, a wrench got thrown into that plan when Coby Bryant underwent surgery (which will keep him out until December at the earliest) in training camp. The question now will be whether Dillon Thieneman can handle more on his plate.

They signed veteran Xavier Woods to start opposite Thieneman in the meantime. However, at age 31, there's a reason he was still available for Chicago in mid-August. He's got limitations at this stage of his career. Thieneman was lauded as one of the biggest steals in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft. He'll have to live up to it to hold back the flood in the secondary.

Logan Jones

Does Garrett Bradbury open the door for Logan Jones to start this season?

Logan Jones actually has the toughest path to playing time among the entire draft class. His ability to see the field will be tied to Garrett Bradbury getting injured or playing bad enough to lose his job.

While Bradbury has never had a player with as much potential as Jones has behind him, he's started every game he's been active for over his seven years in the league. The Bears definitely want the second-round selection to be the center of the future, but they ideally won't want to alter the offensive line's continuity. Jones might have to wait until 2027 to land the starting job.

Sam Roush

How much of a receiving threat can Sam Roush become?

Sam Roush might not have been nearly as flashy as some of the Bears' other rookies in the preseason, but his bright spots were just as impressive as any of the group. The hulking tight end looked like a legit run-after-catch threat with the ball in his hands.

There is much more to the receiving game than being a load to tackle in the open field, though. How is his route-running? Can he make plays in traffic? Can he create separation? Can he make a strong enough impression when the rare opportunities do come to carve out a role in a stacked group of pass-catchers? Those are the questions he'll have to answer to ascend beyond 13-personnel road grader status.

Zavion Thomas

Can Zavion Thomas build off the preseason finale and grab the WR3 job by his lonesome?

Imagine the hype train if Zavion Thomas hadn't been sidelined for the first two preseason games? Would he be coming off the board in the first round of fantasy drafts?? We'll never know. We do know that the train is moving at warp speed at this point, though.

Still, Thomas is not guaranteed a role on offense. In fact, he's guaranteed nothing playing among the Bears' loaded receiver room. As it stands now, he'll be splitting time with Jahdae Walker and Kalif Raymond at WR3. Ben Johnson will definitely have some plays drawn up for all of them, but someone will have to have a slight edge in the competition. Can it be Thomas?

Malik Muhammad II

Will Malik Muhammad II be able to fend off Clark Phillps III and Cam Lewis in the slot?

The Bears are counting on Malik Muhammad II to hold down the nickelback position until Kyler Gordon is back in the lineup. However, the job won't be uncontested, and with him still learning the ropes at the position (he played on the perimeter at Texas), he doesn't exactly have a long leash.

The team acquired Clark Phillips III via trading Gervon Dexter Sr. to Atlanta, and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said they like what he could bring to the slot. Cam Lewis also brings positional versatility, as he's played virtually everywhere in the secondary. The coaching staff is seemingly close to being done with Gordon, so they'll want Muhammad to be the answer there. He'll have to show that he can be that, though.

Keyshaun Elliott

Is Keyshaun Elliott strictly going to be a third-phase contributor in year one?

Keyshaun Elliott, whom the team selected in the fifth round, is behind the 8-ball right now. The linebacker just returned to practice last week, and his chances of contributing on defense seem slim right now.

Barring an injury, he'd be hard-pressed to break the top three on the unit in their base defense. On the other hand, there might be a role on passing downs if Edwards continues on the unfortunate trajectory he was on last season. The veteran is a lock to play a big role on early downs, but he's become a liability in coverage. Time will tell if Elliott can carve out a role there.

Jordan van den Berg

Can Jordan van den Berg continue his upward trajectory now that the games start to count?

Jordan van den Berg was definitely the Bears' buzziest rookie throughout training camp and preseason (at least until Thomas stole the Titans' lunch money). The playing style looks legit. He's a bowling ball of butcher knives on the interior, and he plays every snap to the whistle.

With that said, a ton of players have looked like knives when they're going up against spoons (or something like that) in the preseason. The Bears are clearly counting on the Georgia Tech product's game to translate to the regular season. Now it'll be his turn to make them look smart for doing so.

Jayden Loving

Can Jayden Loving carve out a key role on the defensive line rotation?

The Bears' coaching staff also seems to really like undrafted rookie DT Jayden Loving. It feels safe to assume that his presence was at least partially why they decided to ship Gervon Dexter Sr. out of town last week.

The Wake Forest product showed real flashes this preseason, which is presumably why they didn't want to risk losing him to waivers. However, with so many veterans on the interior, it's fair to wonder just how much of an impact Loving will have right out of the gate. JVDB feels like a safe bet to have a defined role, but Loving could potentially lose a numbers game. Time will tell.

Skyler Thomas

Can Skyler Thomas make himself indispensable once Coby Bryant is healthy?

The Bears are currently rostering five safeties (not counting Bryant, who was placed on Injured Reserve on Tuesday). Once Bryant returns, one of those safeties will get cut. With Elijah Hicks being a special teams ace and Cam Lewis providing versatility at nickel, that decision will likely come down to Xavier Woods or Skyler Thomas.

Thomas showed some promise in the preseason in coverage. If Woods struggles in his age-31 season, there's a better-than-0% chance Thomas might get a chance to be the stopgap until Bryant returns to the lineup. If that becomes the case, then the undrafted rookie definitely won't be the one who gets axed come December.

Beau Gardner

Did I really need to include the long-snapper?

Just kidding... no special teams discrimination here. We actually ranked him on the most likely UDFA signings to stick around back in April (humble brag - I nailed the top three of that list).

We'll actually go with: Can the 2025 Patrick Mannelly Award winner translate his collegiate promise in the NFL? Mannelly played 16 years in Chicago and set a record for most games played with the Bears (245). He's also one of the most beloved Bears of all time, and that's obviously saying a lot. Hopefully Gardner can live up to the reputation that comes with winning the award. He was always meant to be a Chicago Bear.

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