The Chicago Bears may not be finished addressing their running back room. With the decision to wait until the seventh round to draft an RB, Ryan Poles may look for outside help to be satisfied with the running back room.
First-year head coach Ben Johnson prides himself on having a two-headed monster in Detroit with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery. With D’Andre Swift expected to fill Gibbs’ role in Chicago, there are questions if third-year back Roschon Johnson or this year’s seventh-rounder Kyle Monangai are enough to fill the “Knuckles” role Montgomery plays in Detroit. The Athletic’s Ben Standig recently speculated that a reunion between Bears running backs coach Eric Bieniemy and Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. could be on the horizon.
“Meanwhile, two of Robinson’s coached in Washington, Randy Jordan (Tennessee Titans) and Eric Bieniemy (Chicago Bears), head running back rooms with incomplete depth charts,” Standig noted.
Brian Robinson Jr. Could Fill The ‘Knuckles’ Role With the Bears
GettyBrian Robinson Jr. could fill the ‘Knuckles’ role in Chicago.
Robinson is a bigger back at 6’1″ and 228 pounds compared to Swift, standing at 5’9″ and 215 pounds. Standig mentioned that through Week 9 last season, Robinson averaged 4.6 yards per carry and converted 87.5 percent of his third-down attempts, according to TruMedia.
The Commanders could very likely be looking to move off from Robinson. He’s projected to become a free agent after next season, and the team might look to add fresher legs. There’s already talk surrounding the Commanders’ draft selection of Arizona running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt making a case to push Robinson out of a starting role.
There’s still a lot of football left to be played for Robinson. The 26-year-old has 570 carries for 2,329 yards and 15 touchdowns over his three-year NFL career, including career highs last year with 799 rushing yards, eight touchdowns, and a 4.3 yards-per-carry average.
While he is more of a one-dimensional running back, where he lacks in pass-catching abilities, Swift makes up for it.
Other Running Back Options for the Bears
GettyJ.K. Dobbins is among the notable names linked to the Bears in recent weeks.
Two other notable names linked to the Bears in recent weeks are Nick Chubb of the Cleveland Browns and J.K. Dobbins of the Los Angeles Chargers.
Chubb, 29, is coming off devastating back-to-back season-ending injuries and might not be the type of player he once was. He earned four consecutive Pro Bowl selections from 2019-2022 and rushed for over 6,300 yards and 48 touchdowns during his time with the Browns. Besides the injury concerns, running backs nearing 30 have a notoriously short shelf life.
On the other hand, Dobbins, 26, is the same age as Robinson and is viewed by many as the Bears’ best option. He did suffer a major injury in the past, but Dobbins had a bounce-back season in 2024 with 905 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. The problem with Dobbins is that he might be too similar in skillset to that of Swift, which could complicate things if Johnson is seeking a more complementary back.
The Bears have a ton of weapons on offense, but if there’s a moment of realization where adding an RB of Robinson’s skillset might be the final piece of the puzzle, the Bears could likely snag him for a Day 3 draft pick.
