Bear Digest

Best Young Bears Players Worth Hanging Onto in 2025

The Bears have plenty of contracted young players who will be back next year but here are some who may be worth bringing back for another look.

Gene Chamberlain

Reddy Steward makes a tackle in preseason against Buffalo. He was an intriguing player who deserves another look in 2025.
Reddy Steward makes a tackle in preseason against Buffalo. He was an intriguing player who deserves another look in 2025. / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
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When the Bears have their coaching situation settled and, if they haven't already settled the GM situation, when they do, they'll have an evaluation of players to conduct.

In most cases, young players are locked up under contract if they were draft picks and the Bears would be unlikely to move on from them unless they've proven during offseason work not to be worth developing.

For this reason, players who took a step back in their second seasons like Roschon Johnson and Tyler Scott could be valued for a third year.

Johnson has their TD rushing lead, the result of a silly decision to use him almost entirely in goal-line situations or short yardage. Scott hasn't had a chance since Day 1 this year after they acquired Keenan Allen, and he could get a closer look from a new coaching regime.

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However, there are a number of young players working on one-year deals now who were undrafted or came in as free agent signings on short-term deals and should be among those who get another contract whoever takes over as coach.

1. CB Josh Blackwell

He's been working on one-year deals. At age 25, he has become a valued backup because he plays the slot cornerback spot well, but not as well as Kyler Gordon. He also has been among their special teams tackles leaders over his three seasons. Blackwell would not even be on this list and would be a lock to bring back but he will be a restricted free agent this year and this is always a tricky situation. He could essentially be unrestricted because players who are not starters by their fourth year are unlikely to be tendered at the lower levels of restricted free agency. The pay with this tender is still much higher than they would get on the open market. So the Bears may need to let Blackwell go untendered, get into the unrestricted free agency market and then work out a contract with him. This is why it's tricky. He could choose a change of scenery just to get a better chance to win the starting spot, something he's unlikely to get in Chicago with Kyler Gordon playing.

2. DT Jonathan Ford

They just brought him to Chicago off of Green Bay's practice squad and put him to immediate work in the defensive line rotation. Ford has played in two career NFL games, both for the Bears, and had five tackles in his debut but at 6-5, 338, he is showing decent quickness. His size/quickness indicates he could play in more than one type of defensive scheme and that's valuable because no one can be sure at this point where the Bears will take their defense under a new head coach. An exclusive rights free agent, they simply need to tender Ford to keep him.

3. C Doug Kramer

The poor guy just needs to give the ball back to quarterbacks rather than taking it from them on handoffs. If the Bears ever give Kramer a chance at winning the starting center spot, they might be surprised. He's entering Year 3 and has been off the team—with Arizona—then back again and on the practice squad, then on the 53-man all year. One thing he did get to do this year was play a position besides center. Playing some guard was invaluable for a backup lineman.

4. G Bill Murray

It's quite possible that if Murray hadn't sustained a pectoral muscle injury then he would be starting at one of the guard positions this week. In fact, he might have been starting since midseason. The Bears were that high on what he had done in camp and at practices, and had him in three relief roles due to injuries before his injury. PFF liked his play, as well, giving him a grade of 82.4 for 110 plays. If he maintained that level, he would have become a standout player. As it was 82.4 would have had him ranked eighth among all NFL starters if he held that level of play. At 6-4, 307, and with such a strong beginning with the team after he had originally been a defensive tackle when he came to the Patriots in 2022, a new coaching staff needs to take a very good look at this exclusive rights free agent.

5. C Ricky Stromberg

He is another player who could be a center of the future and also has played some guard. Stromberg is currently on the practice squad. He was highly thought of coming out of Washington as a third-round pick in 2023 and had injury issues, then got shuffled to the back burner by the Commanders as they quickly rebuilt. The Bears signed him to the practice squad after he'd been released by the Commanders. At 313 pounds, he has much better size than current center starter Coleman Shelton. He'd need to develop because he played in only four games with Washington.

6. DB Ameer Speed

This is a 6-3, 215-pound cornerback who ran a 4.33-second 40-yard dash. Of course you keep someone like that around even if he hasn't developed yet in the system or another one. They have him on the 53-man roster now and he has played in one game this year after he played for New England and the Colts last year. He was a sixth-round Patriots pick who also played for the Colts.

7. DT Chris Williams

Particularly if they stick with a four-man defensive front, they'll want him around again. He will be a restricted free agent and it might be trickier keeping him than any of the other restricted free agents because defensive tackle is a difficult position to fill with players who have proven themselves. This is his 16th game this week after playing 13 total while with Indianapolis. In very limited time, Williams has three sacks this season, or 1 1/2 less sacks than Montez Sweat for 313 snaps, or 244 fewer snaps than Sweat has had. Williams seems like an ideal sub or role player for a one-gap defensive front.

8. DB Reddy Steward

The training camp and preseason efforts were enough for Steward to warrant another look next year as a potential backup at slot cornerback.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.