Despite rumors that the Chicago Bears may be eyeing an addition of Nick Chubb or J.K. Dobbins, as of now, Ryan Poles seems comfortable with the running backs the Bears currently have on their roster.
As it stands, D'Andre Swift, Roschon Johnson, and Kyle Monangai figure to be the running backs getting offensive snaps for the Bears next season. The Bears also have Travis Homer on their roster, but his value will mostly be felt on special teams.
The expectation this offseason was that Ben Johnson would look to replicate the running back group he had with the Detroit Lions. Currently, Swift would be the closest player the Bears have on their roster who can be compared to Lions' running back Jahmyr Gibbs. Despite once having David Montgomery on their roster, it seemed that the Bears would be in the market this offseason for a running back who can thrive between the tackles.
Monangai could certainly be that running back, but the team seems to have high expectations of Johnson. Johnson was a player whom Poles spoke pretty candidly about during an interview with ESPN 1000 last week.
Despite an inconsistent 2024 season with the Bears, Johnson is still looked favorably on by the Bears' front office. Latest intel shared by Courtney Cronin of ESPN seems to suggest that the front office wasn't a fan of how Johnson's usage was handled last season.
Johnson's usage was all over the place in 2024 and he didn't have much identity in the Bears offense because of it. That's more on how the last coaching staff viewed him/couldn't figure out what to do with him than how the current front office/coaching staff feels.
— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) May 6, 2025
For example,… https://t.co/F7LediEAhH
Roschon Johnson could have renewed value with new Bears' coaching staff
Johnson could very well be the reason why the Bears do not wind up signing Chubb or Dobbins. Lost after his inconsistent season with the Bears last year was that when Johnson was drafted in 2023, there was the belief that he would eventually emerge as the Bears' primary running back. Swift will likely still carry that role for the Bears in 2025, but with a more defined role, Johnson could be the surprise breakout player for the team's offense next season.