B-
Chicago Bears
A sensible, unshowy class lands the Bears a B-.
by DA BEARS ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 1 steals
· 3 reaches
Call it a hunch or call it a gamble, but the Bears spent the Round 3 slot on Chris McClellan, a name most had 48 spots down the list.
For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain. Getting Lew where they did is the sort of value that quietly makes a class. Interior defensive lineman is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but edge rusher.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 25 they get a green-dot type in the middle. A clean fit for the roster.
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren in the 57th pick is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Connor Lew slipping to the Round 3 slot is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A real head-scratcher, Chris McClellan in slot 89 is miles ahead of his ranking. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Good price on Bryce Lance in No. 129, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They liked Kaleb Proctor enough to skip the value, taking him in pick No. 155. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Cole Payton in pick 229 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It fills a real need, too.
Charles Demmings at slot 239 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Adam Randall at Round 7, Pick 25 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.