NFC North · 2026 Draft Class

Chicago Bears 2026 NFL Draft Class

Every Bears selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, the needs they entered the weekend with, and the trades that reshaped their board.

Compiled by the NFL Mock Draft Simulator research desk · Front office at the time: Ryan Poles (GM), Ben Johnson (HC)

The class

Chicago Bears made 7 selections in the 2026 draft, opening with Dillon Thieneman, a safety out of Oregon, at No. 25 overall.

The class skewed toward safety. In total they drafted 7 different positions.

Going into the weekend our board had their priority needs listed as Edge Rusher, Safety, Interior Offensive Line, Defensive Tackle, Wide Receiver. They addressed 4 of their 5 pre-draft needs directly: Safety, Interior Offensive Line, Defensive Tackle, Wide Receiver. Left unaddressed: Edge Rusher.

Their best value relative to the consensus board was Malik Muhammad at No. 124, 46 slots later than the industry board had him ranked (78).

Draft capital

Bears draft capital broke down as 1 Day 1 pick, 3 on Day 2 and 3 on Day 3. 4 were slots they did not own when the weekend began, acquired by trade.

Pick by pick

Every Bears selection, with where it landed against our consensus board and against their own pre-draft needs list.

• Round 1, No. 25: Bears took Dillon Thieneman, within 7 slots of his board ranking of 18. Safety was their No. 2 listed need.
• Round 2, No. 57: Bears moved on Logan Jones on Day 2, paying 41 slots of premium rather than risk the wait. Interior Offensive Line was their No. 3 listed need.
• Round 3, No. 69: Bears moved on Sam Roush on Day 2, 48 slots early, which is what a team does when it has decided the board is wrong. Tight End was not on their priority needs list, a best-player-available call.
• Round 3, No. 89: Bears moved on Zavion Thomas on Day 2, 180 slots ahead of his board ranking, which is conviction rather than value.
• Round 4, No. 124: Bears took Malik Muhammad on Day 3, a board-rank 78 player who fell 46 slots below where the consensus had him. Cornerback was not on their priority needs list, a best-player-available call.
• Round 5, No. 166: Bears took Keyshaun Elliott on Day 3, within 1 slot of his board ranking of 167. Linebacker was not on their priority needs list, a best-player-available call.
• Round 6, No. 213: Bears took Jordan van den Berg on Day 3, within 19 slots of his board ranking of 232.

Pre-draft needs

Our needs assessment for the Bears going into the 2026 draft, ordered by priority. This is the list the class above is measured against.

Draft-day trades

• With Tennessee Titans: sent No. 60 (R2); received No. 69 (R3), No. 144 (R5).
• With Carolina Panthers: sent No. 129 (R4), No. 144 (R5); received No. 124 (R4), No. 166 (R5).
• With Buffalo Bills: sent No. 239 (R7), No. 241 (R7); received No. 213 (R6).

Related

• Round 1 results: every other pick made around the Bears' first selection.
• Position rankings for the groups they drafted: Safety, Interior Offensive Line, Tight End, Wide Receiver, Cornerback, Linebacker, Defensive Tackle.
• The 2026 consensus big board: where every one of these players ranked before the draft.
• Every trade from the 2026 draft: the full ledger, including the Bears' moves.
• Steals and reaches: which picks diverged most from the board, and what that gap means.
• The draft by the numbers: positional supply, school production and how draft capital was distributed.

More on the Bears

The Chicago Bears franchise hub carries the current front office and needs, plus every other class we cover.