Everything for the Bears in the draft will become much clearer after Wednesday as positions fill in through free agency.
The goal for Ryan Poles will be to make the 2025 draft a situation where can be the best available athlete but it better be the best available lineman early whatever they do in free agency.
The Bears' lines need both starters and fortification.
As a result, this pre-free agency mock draft is going to focus on getting as many picks as possible and that means trading back.
They can't get running back Ashton Jeanty anyway, as the Raiders took him sixth. Tackle Will Campbell was there in No. 10 and some people might like him but I'm seeing arms too short for a tackle and a base not big enough to be a great guard. Besides, there's a player I have my eye on who fits a need and will be drafted later.
So it's off to the market to start trading as the Bears are on the clock at No. 10 in this 2025 pre-free agency mock draft.
T Grey Zabel, North Dakota State
Round 1, No. 25
What? No. 25. Zabel? Of course. The only lineman I would have taken at 10 was gone, Armand Membou. Zabel is a perfect fit to train as their center who can play guard and dominated at the Senior Bowl while having an impressive combine. He was making pancakes at the Senior Bowl practices when others couldn't even get it blocked. He should be graded higher into Round 1 than many big boards have him. To get him at No. 25, I traded back first with Miami from 10 to 13 and they gave a Round 3 pick at No. 98 and Round 4 pick at 115. Then I traded back again knowing they had Zabel graded as a late first-round pick and the Texans gave up a second-rounder (57) and a third-rounder (89) to move up from 25th to 13th. James Pearce was a temptation at No. 25, too, but the need for this one particular player is greater considering he can take over as the center after they sign either Evan Brown or Josh Myers or even Ryan Kelly isn't doing it anymore. He can train there and might even break in as a guard if they were to lose Joe Thuney as a free agent in 2026.
DE Nic Scourton, Texas A&M
Round 2, No. 39
A perfect size for the Dennis Allen front at this position, 6-4, 285, and he's only 20 years old. He had eight sacks in 2023 but only four last year with some minor injury issues. He is a stout end who had a very high 7.3% run stop rate but still had an extremely high 17% pass rush win rate. Scourton was found on many mock drafts as high as No. 10 earlier but has fallen out of Round 1 as other players have come to light. The Bears would find him a perfect fit and a steal here.
DT T.J. Sanders, South Carolina
Round 2, No. 41
He probably needs to add a little weight, 10 pounds, to be a good three-technique fit for Allen's system but is very disruptive and quick in the gap, with good lateral movement. He was a former basketball player at 6-4, 290. His length is exactly the kind of player the Bears will want up front and he'll challenge Gervon Dexter for playing time.
RB Quinshon Judkins, Ohio State
Round 2, No. 57
It was either him or Cam Skattebo. The Bears need a back with more power but Judkins brings so much more than mere power like Skattebo has. Judkins ran 4.48 in the 40, which is what D'Andre Swift did. But Judkins runs with power, lean and shows a great ability to stick with his blockers rather than panic and move outside to lose yardage. He's always moving forward. Plus, he is very athletic, with the longest broad jump of all backs (11 feet), and a 38 1/2-inch vertical. The selling point for any coach is his excellent pass blocking ability and toughness. Want Skattebo? This is how much better Judkins is—Skattebo was still there in Round 3 when the Bears picked at 72.
T Cameron Williams, Texas
Round 3, No. 72
This came down to the Bears needing a tackle in case Braxton Jones leaves, but someone big enough to play guard effectively if needed. It was either Williams or Boston College's Ozzy Trapilo and sorry Ryan Poles but Trapilo loses out to the guy with longer arms for a tackle. He has 34 1/2-inch arms, regarded as much better for a tackle than Trapilo's 33 1/2-inch arms. Good speed and hand strength. The one thing they need to work on with Williams is penalties. He had 13 his last year of school, but he'll get a year to learn and is only 21 years old. He was labeled a bit too heavy, but came in much lighter at the combine at 6-6, 317.
S Kevin Winston Jr., Penn State
Round 3, No. 89
With a pick acquired in the trade, here is the safety they need as insurance if there are issues with Jaquan Brisker's health going forward and also for the future after 32-year-old Kevin Byard leaves. Winston needs the time anyway as he is coming off an ACL tear. However, it's expected he'll be ready by training camp and even then he wouldn't necessarily be needed right away. He'll have time to learn. How good is he? In 2023, Pro Football Focus had him as the only safety in the country to reach an overall grade of 85.0 against both the run and the pass. He is ideal size at 6-2, 208 and has both the quickness and tackling ability to be back in single-high coverage or matched up but also plays well two-deep.
TE Harold Fannin Jr., Bowling Green
Round 3, No. 98
Another pick from a trade and another need player who needs to bulk up a bit but could actually play a bigger role immediately because he's a move-tight end and the Bears don't have a player who performs this role. Cole Kmet is an in-line tight end. Fannin can take linebackers deeper if matched up on them and stands a better chance to beat safeties. He also is a willing blocker, although he wouldn't necessarily be acquired for that role at 6-4, 241. His size isn't really an issue because he's only 20. He'll fill out, and besides, he has already put on 11 pounds since college season.
CB Mello Dotson, Kansas
Round 4, No. 115
This shows how that fourth-round pick is so valuable if they only had one. Fortunately, the trade gave them one. The Bears get a player here in the first round of Day 3 and his someone who could start as a challenger to Tyrique Stevenson and Terell Smith. Dotson is 6-1, 190, wasn't as well known because he played in the shadow of cornerback and teammate Cobee Bryant, but is good in his own right. He had 11 interceptions over the last three years, which shows he is a playmaker, and scouts regard his strength to be matching up in press/man coverage. The Bears will be doing more of that now in their new scheme.
WR Kobe Hudson, Central Florida
Round 5, No. 149
The draft simulator liked other choices here but I'm looking for a slot receiver at this point in the draft and found a luxury type of player who also fills a need. They require a slot receiver. Hudson hasn't really been mentioned like this specifically, but he has all the traits to show he can be useful in this way. At 6-1, 200, scouts love his short-area quickness and ability as a hand fighter. Plus, he can be used in gadget situations because he was an outstanding quarterback in high school. His other great strength, according to PFF scouting, is he uses leverage well to be open. That's exactly what they'd need from a slot with short-area quickness.
LB Smael Mondon Jr., Georgia
Round 7, No. 235
The Bears never get anything from seventh-rounders so in this situation they might at least find someone who is good on special teams and can train for a spot as a weakside linebacker. It's remarkable to find a player so highly ranked at anything in Round 7 but his broad jump was top 97 percentile and 10-yard split for the 40 top 5 percentile at the combine. And he also has been labeled by PFF as a "fantastic" tackler. If you can find a seventh-round pick fantastic at anything, you take him. He also has the Georgia pedigree working on his side.
T Clay Webb, Jacksonville State
Round 7, No. 242
He might be a tackle or guard but who cares as a seventh-rounder. This is no mere Jacksonville State player. He played two years first at Georgia before he transferred and became an all-conference player. He was 6-3, 290 pounds during the season but since getting to work for the draft he got up to 310 for the Senior Bowl. He probably figures long range as a guard because of shorter arms but who cares what position in Round 7. He'll have a shot at helping them at some point. The other thing scouting reports said that many would enjoy: He knows how to finish blocks and is a former state champion wrestler.
This pick concludes our mock. The simulator gave it an A- grade. Humbly, I grade it an A+.
