Now that the 2026 NFL Draft is complete, it's time for fans and analysts to react by declaring just how good or bad each team's draft class is, despite none of the prospects playing a snap in the NFL yet.
Sure, we can try to project how a player will do at the NFL level, but not all projections are accurate, and not all success can be defined that easily. The Chicago Bears appear to have a historic 2025 NFL Draft. However, many fans disagree with the team's 2026 decisions.
Fan reaction seems to center on the idea that the Chicago Bears did not spend enough capital on the defensive line. They signed inexpensive options in free agency—guys who are nothing special.
I, too, fell into the category of thinking that since the Bears didn't take a swing or make a splash on the defensive line during free agency, then they must address early draft capital at the position in the 2026 NFL Draft. However, as time passed and I heard what Ryan Poles and others had to say, it became obvious that they were not going to place the same emphasis on the position as we fans did.
Fast forward to draft weekend, and the Chicago Bears landed one of the best prospects in the draft in Dillon Thieneman. I see Thieneman making this defense better very early on in his career. Paired with Coby Bryant, I truly believe this tandem can be viewed as one of the best in the league. It may just take time for the two to gel and for Thieneman to catch up to the pace of the NFL. Transitioning from college to the NFL isn't always a quick development.
On Day 2, chaos hit. Fans went nuts when Ryan Poles and Ben Johnson used their second pick on a center, their third pick on a TE3, and their fourth pick on a WR that most draft analysts had graded as a seventh-round prospect.
I took to my socials and started asking fans what they would have preferred to see from the Chicago Bears, using hindsight on how the draft actually unfolded. This ignores the consensus boards because teams clearly had guys ranked differently than other teams and analysts alike.
I proposed an alternative draft class that I thought might appease the fanbase. This is obviously not an exact science since there are ripple effects to taking different players at different times in the draft, but here is what I came up with. I assumed the same trades the Bears made, too.
Chicago Bears Hindsight Re-Draft
25. Keldric Faulk or T.J. Parker (EDGE)
57. Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (S)
69. Sam Hecht or Connor Lew (C)
89. Gracen Halton (DT)
124. Malik Muhammad (CB)
166. Keyshaun Elliott (LB)
213. Zavion Thomas (WR)
What do you think? Would you have preferred to see a draft that looks more like this? It seems most fans are frustrated that the team didn't take a defensive end. In this case, not only did I go with a defensive end, but I also took one with their first-round pick. If you don't like the players taken here, who would you have preferred they take instead?
Now, I also know that there have been reports that Zavion Thomas would not have fallen to the sixth round despite consensus rankings having him as a seventh-rounder. I did this before the Field Yates report, but feel free to sub in a different speedster-type WR who may not be quite as good.
For me, I came away liking the Chicago Bears' actual draft despite questioning some of the picks in real time. As the draft unfolded and they saw who they landed on Day 3, I think their draft class looks great. I also never thought they'd target both a DT and DE in this draft. I have been saying for months now that they don't see the defensive line the same way fans do, and thought safety or cornerback would go first. Turns out, I was right.
Read more: Bears' undrafted free agent could go from long shot to training camp darling
How did you like the Chicago Bears' 2026 draft class? Would you have rather seen it as I presented it? It appears fans are split based on the responses I received on the topic.
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