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Bears named as 'ideal fit' for top running back prospect in 2026 NFL draft

Originally posted on Chicago Bears on SI
By Pete Martuneac | Last updated Jul 25, 2025 3:30 PM ET

Give credit to Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles for the way he attacked this offseason. He hired the best head coaching candidate to hit the market in recent memory, poured money into fixing a broken offensive line, and got younger pass catchers for quarterback Caleb Williams to grow with. Unfortunately, even the best GM's can't address every roster weakness in a single offseason, and some positions were left with scraps.

Arguably the biggest weakness in Chicago remains the running back room. Though they've heard the noise and are working to prove everyone wrong, there's no denying that Poles did try to land a top running back in this year's NFL draft and, barring a bounce back year for D'Andre Swift or a meteoric rise for 7th-round rookie Kyle Monangai, he will try again next year.

Luckily for Bears fans, the 2026 NFL draft seems to be just as deep at running back as the 2025 class. Matt Miller, a draft analyst for ESPN, recently spoke to scouts and personnel executives around the league to get a sense of who the top prospect at each position will be. For running backs, it came down to Notre Dame's Jeremiyah Love and Penn State's Nicholas Singleton.

Love is (for now) the consensus RB1 for the 2026 class, but a former NFL general manager who still works as a consultant for teams thinks certain teams will value Singleton more for what he brings to the table that Love doesn't. Here's what this anonymous former GM had to say in the story: "Love is the guy, but Singleton might be a sneaky RB1 for teams that want some power and pop but value the passing game. Chicago or New England, for example, are ideal fits for him."

Obviously, we will never know who this GM is, but he knows his stuff because he nailed it. Ever since the Bears let David Montgomery walk in free agency, there's been a severe shortage of firepower at running back, and that's what Singleton brings in bunches. Singleton's prowess in the passing game was also brought up, another thing that Bears head coach Ben Johnson wants out of his running backs.

If all goes well for Chicago this year, they will finally land a draft slot no higher than the early 20's for the first time in five years. That would put them in the perfect range to land one of the top two running backs without having to trade up or worry about the pick being a 'reach'. If this anonymous former GM is right, then No. 10 of Penn State could be Chicago's first rookie next year.

This article first appeared on Chicago Bears on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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