Bear Digest

How the Chicago Bears can make the most of their two second-round picks in the 2025 NFL Draft

Alan Goldsher

Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles has options galore on day two of the 2025 NFL Draft
Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles has options galore on day two of the 2025 NFL Draft / Matt Marton-Imagn Images
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When it comes to the second round of the NFL Draft, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has channelled his inner Larry David and proven himself to be pretty, pretty, pretty good.

Not great, mind you. Just pretty, pretty, pretty good.

  • In 2022, his first year at the helm, Poles grabbed cornerback Kyler Gordon at 39; nine slots later, he picked up safety Jaquan Brisker. Save for Brisker’s concussion issues, the duo has been solid, and they’ve yet to reach their full potential.
  • The following season, the GM went with defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. at 53, then acquired the 56th pick via trade, which he used to select cornerback Tyrique Stevenson. Both Dexter and Stevenson are works-in-progress, but have demonstrated enough to justify their draft slots.

Last year, Poles didn’t have a second-rounder at his disposal, but that’s cool, as he was probably pooped from a busy first round in which he selected quarterback Caleb Williams and receiver Rome Odunze.

Here in 2025, when it comes to round two of the draft, it’s déjà vu all over again.

Double the Picks, Double the Fun

Barring a trade, for the third time in four years, Chicago will walk away from the draft with a pair of players selected early on day two, specifically with the 39th and 41st picks.

  • In ’22, Poles came into the round with a singular strategy: Shore up the defensive backfield. It worked.
  • In ’23, it felt like he went with who he felt was the best player available. Thing is, Dexter has yet to make a consistent impact, while Stevenson, despite showing flashes, has been the dictionary definition of mercurial.

Thus, it’s fair to surmise that coming into day two with a unified strategy—say, creating a single quality position group, or doubling down on one side of the ball—is a more successful approach than grabbing one good dude followed by another good dude.

To that end, here are four pairings Poles could consider as the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft gets closer. And closer. And closer.

Mason Taylor, TE, LSU

-and-

Jaylin Noel, WR, Iowa State

If Poles lands an O-linemen in round one, it would make perfect sense to grab a couple of pass-catchers with whom Ben Johnson can have some fun.

Taylor has the chops to become a mid-range TE1, while the speedy Noel could challenge newcomer Olamide Zaccheaus for the WR3 spot.

Carson Schwesinger, LB, UCLA

-and-

Landon Jackson, EDGE, Arkansas

When Poles jettisoned linebacker Jack Sanborn, the relatively thin LB room lost some more weight, so the 6’2”, 225-pound Schwesinger could see plenty of snaps from day one.

As for Jackson, he’s been mocked all over the map, in part because this is an EDGE-heavy draft. But landing both of these elite athletes would do wonders for new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s rotation.

Josh Conerly Jr., OT, Oregon

-and-

Donovan Jackson, OG, Ohio State

Aaaaand, that’s a wrap for the O-line.

Adding a pair of touted rooks to the recent offensive trench acquisitions (Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman, Jonah Jackson) and rising star Darnell Wright would put quarterback Caleb Williams’ mind at ease for the next several seasons.

Trade Up

-or-

Trade Down

-or-

Just Trade

As one of only three teams with multiple second-round picks (Buffalo and Seattle being the others), the Bears have as much, if not more early-draft flexibility than any team in the league.

Poles could package both of his seconds for a mid-to-late first-round selection, or climb up the board by pairing 10 and 41, or swap the 39th pick for a young veteran starter.

One way or the other, the Chicago Bears' war room will be a pretty, pretty, pretty good place to be on day two of the 2025 NFL Draft.

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Alan Goldsher
ALAN GOLDSHER

Alan Goldsher has written about sports for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Apple, Playboy, NFL.com, and NBA.com, and he’s the creator of the Chicago Sports Stuff Substack. He’s the bestselling author of 15 books, and the founder/CEO of Gold Note Records. Alan lives in Chicago, where he writes, makes music, and consumes and creates way too much Bears content. You can visit him at http://www.AlanGoldsher.com and http://x.com/AlanGoldsher.

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