The Chicago Bears were not done making selections in the 2026 NFL Draft on offense as they added yet another pass catcher for quarterback Caleb Williams.
This time, Bears general manager Ryan Poles uses one of his two third-round picks on LSU wide receiver Zavion Thomas. During the NFL Combine, Thomas ran one of the fastest 40-yard dashes as he got a 4.28-second run.
Thomas was a jack-of-all-trades for the Tigers in his college career, helping in the receiving game, the rushing attack, and on special teams as a returner. Last year, he went for 488 yards and four touchdowns receiving, 99 rushing yards and one touchdown, and 153 punt return yards.
Bears selected Zavion Thomas in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft
There is one clear reason that Bears head coach Ben Johnson wanted Thomas on the roster: speed. The Bears are getting a deep threat and another special teams ace to help out on the team for the 2026 campaign.
Chicago already has Luther Burden and Rome Odunze as the top receivers. Backing them up are Kalif Raymond and Jahdae Walker.
With Thomas in the picture, he could be looking at being the next WR3 and will have to compete with Raymond on special teams to see who the main returner will be. Walker showed some good stuff late in the season and already has trust from Williams, so he will be a challenger for the job.
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Johnson wanted this to happen for his offense, as he can use Thomas in so many ways to help with speed at receiver or on bubble screens as an extension of the running game, like Burden was used earlier in the 2025 season. The Bears got a secret weapon on offense and will be a difference maker sooner than expected.
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