The Chicago Bears have already had an exciting offseason and the 2025 NFL Draft is still a week away. The Bears got off the a strong start, hiring former Lions OC Ben Johnson as their next head coach. Chicago also made a series of trades and free agency moves to completely rebuild their offensive line.
Chicago will enter the 2025 NFL Draft with seven selections, including the 10th overall pick.
But which players will the Bears go after during the draft?
Below we will explore who the Bears may select in the 2025 NFL Draft in our final mock draft before the big day.
Membou has become one of the leading contenders to land with the Bears.
Chicago has already invested heavily in upgrading their offensive line this offseason. However, that should not prevent them from adding a talented player like Membou.
Membou is young (21 years old) and brings plenty of upside to the table. He has almost everything that NFL scouts want from starting tackles. Membou has an impressive frame and uses it well, boasting a combination of finesse and raw power that could set him up for success in nearly any offensive scheme.
The Bears already have Braxton Jones at left tackle and former first-round pick Darnell Wright at right tackle. Personally, I would keep Wright at right tackle and transition Membou to left tackle with the Bears.
After the Membou pick, the Bears now have a completely reworked offensive line. Ben Johnson is used to having a strong o-line in Detroit, so this should put him at ease.
It is hard to argue with this pick by the Bears.
Chicago’s draft room would erupt into applause if Hampton fell into their lap in real life.
Hampton is regarded as the second-best running back in this year’s draft behind superstar Ashton Jeanty. In that respect, some NFL scouts have compared Hampton’s talent to Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs, who was the RB2 behind Bijan Robinson two years ago.
Hampton is a bruising running back who runs north and south. He is a powerful runner who can carry a heavy workload as a team’s lead back. The Bears may not ask him to do that, since they already have D’Andre Swift as a change-of-pace option.
Now that the Bears have a brand new o-line, they could punch open plenty of holes for Hampton to rumble through.
Ben Johnson would likely give Hampton all of the carries he could handle if he lands with the Bears.
TRADE!
Bears receive:
Saints receive:
The Bears probably did not intend to trade down from this premium pick.
However, the Saints offer them a significant haul to move up for Michigan DT Kenneth Grant. Chicago would be foolish not to take them up on the offer.
Chicago waits another 30 picks and would likely be thrilled to see a player like Oladejo still on the board.
Oladejo is a converted linebacker, which naturally gives him some positional versatility. That said, his future in the NFL is as an edge rusher.
He does not have the best instincts in the run game, but NFL teams will draft him to be an edge rusher.
As a result, Oladejo would likely become a situational pass rusher during his rookie season while he learns the game from veteran Montez Sweat.
Chicago needed some depth at edge rusher, even after signing Dayo Odeyingbo in free agency.
This trade will look even better next year when Chicago has an extra second-round pick.
Chicago’s lack of depth at wide receiver is not talked about enough.
The Bears address that need by adding Williams, who is a popular receiver among many NFL draft analysts.
Williams played with Miami QB Cam Ward while both were at UNLV. He then transferred to Washington State and had an excellent senior season.
This is a great value pick as Williams is expected to go off the board in the second round.
Williams projects as a WR3 in the NFL. This is perfect for a Bears team that already has DJ Moore and Rome Odunze locked up for multiple seasons.
Turner is a bit of a hybrid player at 290lbs. This puts him on the lighter side as a defensive tackle but the heavy side as an edge rusher.
Fortunately, Turner can learn how to use that to his advantage from none other than Grady Jarrett, who has almost the exact same build.
Turner has the upside to eventually become a starter for the Bears next to Gervon Dexter II.
I would expect Chicago to use him as a rotational player during his rookie season, filling in for Jarrett whenever he needs rest.
This pick could look like a steal a few seasons down the road.
The Bears just keep adding to the offensive line, this time adding tackle Anthony Belton.
Many NFL scouts believe Belton will be selected in the third round, which makes this pick an incredible value for Chicago.
Belton has the necessary upside to eventually become a starting right tackle in the NFL. During his rookie season, he can sit behind Darnell Wright and learn the NFL game.
Belton could find the field right away as a swing tackle, essentially playing the role that Dan Skipper does for the Lions.
If you polled 100 NFL scouts and asked them for a sleeper prospect, you might be surprised how many answer with Willie Lampkin.
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said “Lampkin has the best tape I’ve studied of any prospect in the 2025 draft” when it comes to run blocking. That is certainly high praise.
Lampkin’s incredible run blocking ability is exactly what Ben Johnson wants, especially after adding Membou and Hampton.
Lampkin immediately becomes a high-level backup for the Bears who could find the field early in some of Johnson’s exotic packages with extra offensive linemen.
McWilliams is a sudden cornerback who excels at flying downhill towards the ball carrier.
As for coverage, McWilliams excels in off coverage and therefore could be a solid fit in zone-heavy defenses. Bears DC Dennis Allen historically uses a mixture of zone and man defense, so McWilliams could be a good fit in a rotational role.
McWilliams has plenty of room to grow, so he must learn how to contribute on special teams right away if he wants to make the final roster.
This pick is nothing more than a dart throw at a valuable position.
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The Green Bay Packers have a cause for concern with Jordan Love in the preseason. The quarterback suffered a thumb injury during the Packers' 30-10 loss to the New York Jets on Saturday. Love went 1-of-5 passing for seven yards and took a sack for -3 yards in the defeat. Both of his drives ended in punts. Per Matt Schneidman of The Athletic, Love is set to have surgery on his thumb after seeing how it held up at practice on Monday. General manager Brian Gutekunst believes Love will be ready for Week 1 against the Detroit Lions. "Gutekunst sounded adamant that Love will be ready for Week 1 against the Lions," Schneidman wrote. "Hit his left hand on a helmet on that half-scramble vs. Jets. Wanted to see how it felt at practice yesterday and decided to get it fixed to avoid future issues. Will be with team in Indianapolis. "Brian Gutekunst says Jordan Love is having a procedure done on his left thumb. It’s a 'ligament thing.' Hurt it in the preseason opener. Gutekunst hopes he returns to practice next week." The injury comes at an inopportune time for the Packers. Love and the majority of his receivers have not been in sync during training camp and in the preseason game. Like last season, Packers' receivers have dropped passes during practices and did so in the preseason opener against the Jets. Green Bay needs Love on the field, gaining chemistry with his pass-catching targets, including first-round pick Matthew Golden, before it plays the Lions.
Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has been named in a lawsuit that was filed in Hawaii on Friday. Ohtani and his agent, Nez Balelo, are being sued by a real estate investor and a broker in Hawaii who have accused Ohtani and Balelo of sabotaging a $240M real estate deal for a development on the Big Island. According to court documents that were obtained by Jimmy Golen of The Associated Press, real estate developer Kevin J. Hayes Sr. and real estate broker Tomoko Matsumoto say Ohtani and Balelo deliberately had them removed from the project “for no reason other than their own financial self-interest.” The lawsuit claims Ohtani was brought into the deal for his promotional value and that he and his agent pushed the founders of the project out using “threats and baseless legal claims.” “Defendants must be held accountable for their actions, not shielded by fame or behind-the-scenes agents acting with impunity,” the lawsuit states. “Plaintiffs bring this suit to expose Defendants’ misconduct and to ensure that the rules of contract, fair dealing, and accountability apply equally to all — celebrity or not.” Hayes and Matsumoto have also accused Ohtani and Balelo of trying to push them out of a similar neighboring development project. The $240M Big Island development is located along Hapuna Beach, which is rated one of the top beaches in the world. Matsumoto was supposed to be the listing agent for the properties, which average more than $17.3M each. A brochure for the project stated that Ohtani, who was called “Japan’s Babe Ruth” has committed to buying one of the 14 properties and acting as a “celebrity spokesperson” for the development. Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700M contract with the Dodgers prior to the 2024 season. The two-way star is having another monster year with a .284 average, 42 home runs, 78 RBI and a 1.013 OPS entering Tuesday. Ohtani has also returned to pitching this season and has a 2.37 ERA across 19 innings. Ohtani was also connected to a massive gambling scandal last year, though Major League Baseball determined that the 31-year-old was not guilty of any wrongdoing.
During a recent edition of the "Orange and Brown Talk Podcast," Cleveland Browns beat reporter Ashley Bastock of the Cleveland Plain Dealer suggested that Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski may not be prepared for the "potential fan backlash" that could arise regarding the team's handling of rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Stefanski seemed to say plenty about the subject when it was learned on Monday that Sanders remains fourth on the club's unofficial depth chart even though he enjoyed a solid NFL debut in the club's preseason opener at the Carolina Panthers on Friday night. Also on Monday, Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer made it known that Stefanski won't be in a rush to play Sanders or fellow first-year pro Dillon Gabriel ahead of schedule. "Stefanski and the other offensive coaches have a plan for the rookie QBs, and they’re not about to be swayed by public opinion and the Sanders-mania that’s sweeping the nation," Cabot wrote. "Yes, it was a great debut against the Panthers with two beautiful touchdown passes to first-year receiver Kaden Davis. But Stefanski always keeps things simple for his rookie quarterbacks in preseason games, and most have looked excellent in their outings under him. Therefore, he wasn’t ready Monday to start handing over those precious starting reps to Sanders when he’s unlikely to start Week 1 and doesn’t necessarily need that valuable time with the ones — yet." Neither Gabriel nor presumed backup Kenny Pickett played against the Panthers after they were slowed by hamstring injuries during training camp. Meanwhile, Sanders completed 14-of-23 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns in Cleveland's 30-10 victory over Carolina. Gabriel returned to the practice field on Monday, but Pickett reportedly could be sidelined "for a couple more weeks." It's unclear if either signal-caller will play in Cleveland's preseason matchup at the Philadelphia Eagles this coming Saturday. "They have had a process with Shedeur all the way through," Cabot added during the latest episode of the podcast. "And even when they were taking heat nationally from all kinds of pundits and experts saying that they were setting Shedeur up to fail, they stuck to their guns. And even after his really, really nice debut, they really haven’t changed the process." As recently as Tuesday morning, Zac Jackson of The Athletic mentioned that veteran Joe Flacco is still "the clear leader" to be Cleveland's Week 1 starter over Sanders, Gabriel and Pickett. As of Tuesday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook had Flacco as a -310 betting favorite to get the nod for the Browns' regular-season opener versus the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. Previous whispers indicated Stefanski will want to name his Week 1 QB1 before Cleveland wraps the preseason up with a home game against the Los Angeles Rams on Aug. 23. It certainly sounds like Stefanski won't lose any sleep over disappointing members of a passionate fan base who want to see what Sanders can do against live defenses in meaningful contests.
NFL legend Tom Brady isn't happy with the current climate in college sports. Fueled by money — specifically, revenue-sharing and name, image and likeness deals — along with the transfer portal's explosion and ongoing conference realignment, Brady says a reality check is needed in collegiate athletics. "But because we’re just talking about money, money, money, money … that’s the only value in college? Is that what we’re saying? To me, the priorities are a bit messed up," Brady said in a conversation with Fox Sports' Joel Klatt on the "Big Noon Conversations" podcast. College sports, in particular football and basketball, are a big business, and Brady recognizes that. At the same time, given NIL and other factors, there isn't a ton of loyalty in the college game, as players switch schools all the time. Plus, as Brady notes, these players are missing out on the college experience that he had while playing quarterback for Big Ten Conference powerhouse Michigan from 1995-1999, because they're competing for two or three schools. "I didn’t go to three different colleges," Brady, who won seven Super Bowls in the NFL, continued. "I didn’t leave college when it seemed like I wasn’t gonna play. I wasn’t at college to do anything other than have a great college experience, to go to school, to have camaraderie with my teammates and to compete at a high level. That’s really where the focus was. And at a young age, that’s where I think the focus needs to be." Brady doesn't blame the players. They're teenagers or in their early 20s when suiting up for college teams. He says that players' parents have to protect them. It's even more complicated these days (and tempting) because of the money being offered to top-ranked prospects, and some of these young men also have agents now. "It’s very intriguing to get that quick dollar," Brady said. "Look, we had a $400 scholarship check, and it seemed like I was rich. It really did. I’m sure most kids felt like that. We got pizza cards to go to dinner, and we had a training table, and it was an amazing experience. We didn’t think about the money." Brady says his time at Michigan prepared him for the pro ranks. He was in college for four years but didn't become the Wolverines' starter until his junior season. While Brady was a good college quarterback, he wasn't elite. He was selected in the sixth round of the NFL Draft and used that as motivation to prove that he belonged in the pros. What then transpired was Brady evolving into the greatest quarterback in the history of the NFL. He says young players today are too quick to move to a different school if they're not getting enough playing time. "The lessons I learned in college — and certainly about competition — those traits transformed my life as a professional. I was ready to compete against anybody, because the competition in college toughened me up so much that I had a self-belief and self-confidence that whatever I was faced with, I could overcome that," Brady said. Brady isn't saying that money isn't important. But he is saying what many others are thinking. The emphasis on money in college sports is concerning and problematic. "We’re valuing the wrong things," said Brady.