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Top 26 Chicago Bears of 2026: Expanded D'Andre Swift Role Looks Possible

Ben Johnson last year asked a lot of their speed threat at running back but he could well find they want even more from him this season for a good reason.
Gene Chamberlain|
D'Andre Swift tries to elude Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell last season at Soldier Field.
D'Andre Swift tries to elude Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell last season at Soldier Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Chicago Bears

In assessing his own 2025 season and looking ahead, Bears running back D'Andre Swift couldn't be negative.

Coming off a career season-high 1,087 yards rushing when your team made the divisional playoff round is no cause for gloom. Swift might have had a good deal more yardage if the offensive line had been operating full tilt from the start but with so many new pieces it took four games to get into gear.

"I was able to capitalize off the opportunities I was given," Swift said. "I still feel like I left something out there. That's just me just being critical of myself.

"Looking back over everything, for the most part I feel like I did a good job of doing whatever I was asked to do."

This is the key for Swift going into this season, as he comes in ranked No. 11 on the Chicago Bears On SI list of the team's most important players for 2026. Swift is capable of more, and it depends largely upon what they ask of him because he has few limitations physically at 27 years old. He is in the prime years for a back.

The Bears last year got 4.9 yards per carry from Swift and his two highest yards-per-carry averages have come in offenses headed by coach Ben Johnson, the highest in Detroit in 2022 at 5.5 yards per carry. The only aspect of his play last year to decline was in receiving.

Improving here simply comes down to whether they ask him to do it. Quarterback Caleb Williams targeted Swift only 48 times, a career-low for the former Georgia back.

Swift and Williams could benefit more if he's used more as a receiver. Simply throwing more times to Swift could help Williams' completion percentage greatly. It's a matter of finding the checkdown receiver or maybe even locating Swift more downfield in wheel routes and other routes that could produce bigger gains. There has been no evidence Swift is lacking as a receiver since very early in his career, when he dropped a game-winning throw against the Bears for the Lions.

Possible pause for concern

Possibly the only two factors working against another big or even bigger year for Swift are the development of Kyle Monangai and the change in running backs coach.

Losing backs coach Eric Bieniemy to the Chiefs as their offensive coordinator removed a demanding presence from the running backs room. Eric Studesville replaced him, though, and Miami had been top six three of the last four years in rushing. He couldn't have been doing too much wrong with the Dolphins.

As for Monangai, even if he develops further it is unlikely he would place Swift as the lead back. Johnson likes the speed threat as the main weapon in the backfield just as he did with Jahmyr Gibbs in Detroit. They eventually worked more to Gibbs as the main ball carrier.

Swift is already in this role for the Bears. Monangai is a valued change-up type who provides the punch with explosive power. His value as a receiver is negligible after a year when he led the team in dropped passes and was graded by Pro Football Focus as the worst pass blocker on the offense in 2025.

Swift was graded the league's 13th best starting back by PFF. He is one commodity they lack in the rest of their backfield corps. There is no other proven explosive back. They have other power options behind Swift, like Roschon Johnson or even Brittain Brown. None of those three ran faster than a 4.58-second 40 time.

It's Swift they must trust and they'll need to watch his health carefully throughout the year because of the high value he carries as their backfield speed threat.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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