Doctors doubted he\u2019d ever play football again<\/a>. Large began his career in NAIA before he got his chance in Iowa City as a fullback, H-back and special teams contributor. It\u2019s hard to be named honorable-mention All-Big Ten with only eight receptions, so clearly Large was an impact player for Iowa\u2019s run game and special teams units.<\/p>\nBrugler wrote that Large was described as the \u201cheart and soul\u201d of the Iowa program. \u201cLarge finished his three-year Iowa stint with only 14 catches (and zero touchdowns), but his impact was felt much more on tape than the stat sheet. \u2026 His football character is off the charts \u2014 he will do whatever is needed, no questions asked.\u201d When learning Large\u2019s story and reading that report, it\u2019s no surprise that coach Ben Johnson would want him on the team. The Bears don\u2019t really have a player like that, and as we watch them evolve into a team ready to use more \u201c13 personnel,\u201d Large will get to develop in a pretty good room and has the right head coach to find him a role.<\/p>\n
5. Skyler Thomas, S, Oregon State<\/p>\n
Brugler had a seventh-round grade on Thomas, who has great size (6-1 3\/4, 210 pounds) while also sticking with a theme of this draft class \u2014 he was a captain at Oregon State. He had 10 passes defensed in 2024. \u201cThomas is a good-sized athlete with aggressiveness to work off contact, but his staying power at the next level will depend on his ability to stay disciplined in coverage,\u201d Brugler wrote. \u201cHis special teams skill set and experience will help him in the NFL.\u201d\u00a0 The Bears are likely set with their top four at safety with Coby Bryant, Dillon Thieneman, Cam Lewis and Elijah Hicks. Thomas will need to prove his value on special teams, where Hicks is best. I\u2019m not sure if the Bears would keep five safeties \u2014 that depends on special teams \u2014 but Thomas could earn a spot as the practice-squad safety.<\/p>\n
6. Jayden Loving, DT, Wake Forest<\/p>\n
Loving\u2019s testing is off the charts considering his size (6-1 3\/8, 309 pounds) and position, something that appealed to Poles and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, who is always looking to upgrade team speed. Loving\u2019s 4.82-second 40-time at his pro day would have tied for third fastest at this year\u2019s combine. His 7.15-second three-cone time would have been the sixth fastest at his position dating to 2010. Brugler wrote that Loving \u201cneeds to mature his block recognition and leverage to take the next step in his development, but his movement ability is rare for his size.\u201d Loving had 8.5 tackles for loss last season and was an honorable mention All-ACC. Defensive tackle is a position that could have a bunch of turnover next year. Loving might have to begin on the practice squad after the Bears signed a couple of free agents and used a sixth-round pick on Jordan van den Berg, but his motor should be fun to watch in camp.<\/p>\n
7. Coleman Bennett, RB, Kennesaw State<\/p>\n
The Bears kept only three running backs on the roster last season, and that will likely be the case in 2026. The No. 3 is Roschon Johnson, who offers special teams value. Brittain Brown got some reps last season, too, including a touchdown in Cincinnati. For Bennett to break through, he\u2019ll have to be effective on special teams. He certainly has the size for it (5-11 1\/8, 203 pounds). He\u2019ll likely be competing with Brown and Deion Hankins for the practice squad. With Johnson in the last year of his rookie deal and D\u2019Andre Swift in the last year of his contract, 2027 has some running back question marks. Last season, Bennett rushed for 764 yards, averaging 4.9 yards per carry, and also had 27 catches for 315 yards. He had seven total touchdowns.<\/p>\n
8. Miller Moss, QB, Louisville<\/p>\n
Moss will enter the rookie minicamp with the most name recognition, maybe outside Dillon Thieneman. It\u2019ll be a familiar face in the quarterback room, as Moss was Caleb Williams\u2019 backup at USC before he took over in 2024. Moss played his final season at Louisville and went 9-3 as a starter, including a solid performance against Miami, where he threw two touchdowns and no interceptions in a winning effort. He finished last season with 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 64.2 percent of his passes. Brugler had Moss as his 22nd-ranked quarterback.<\/p>\n
Moss will get a ton of reps at the rookie minicamp, which is good because then he will take a back seat for the rest of the spring and summer as the No. 4 quarterback. His best-case scenario is proving enough to earn a practice-squad spot, and he should have some preseason opportunities to do so. \u201cIt\u2019s important to keep working that quarterback room and making sure we\u2019ve got guys that can come here and add to the competition and guys that we want to pour into so that we can develop, and then we\u2019ll see where it goes,\u201d Poles said after the draft.<\/p>\n
9. Gabriel Plascencia, K, San Diego State<\/p>\n
When you want another leg in the building for OTAs and training camp, why not get someone nicknamed \u201cThe Hefty Lefty\u201d? Plascencia was listed at 245 pounds at San Diego State, and he had a solid career for the Aztecs (19 of 23 field goals made in 2025 with a long of 53 yards). Cairo Santos isn\u2019t going anywhere, and there\u2019s no substitute for his knowledge of how to kick at Soldier Field. There are two years left on his contract. Can Plascencia, a second-team All-Mountain West performer last season, push him? It\u2019s unlikely, but maybe he can earn himself a spot on the team\u2019s in-case-of-emergency list.<\/p>\n
10. Mason Murphy, OT, Auburn<\/p>\n
Murphy does not grade out well athletically compared with the tackles the Bears usually target. Maybe they see him at center or guard, as they are constantly trying to load up on interior depth. He\u2019s 6-5 1\/8, 315 pounds with 34 3\/8-inch arms and started nine games at right tackle and three at center for Auburn last season. Murphy will have several veteran linemen in front of him, putting him on the practice squad path.<\/p>\n
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\n Omari Kelly\u2019s experience in the return game may be his best hope of sticking around in Chicago. (Duane Burleson \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
11. Omari Kelly, WR, Michigan State<\/p>\n
Nearly every UDFA class includes a couple of receivers. Walker made it last year, and JP Richardson spent the season on the practice squad. Based on Brugler\u2019s receiver rankings, Kelly (128th) has a long way to go to get any roster notice. The return experience is notable, though. He had 12 punt returns last season to go along with 626 receiving yards. A 5-11, 190-pounder, Kelly also played at Auburn and Middle Tennessee State. With the Blue Raiders in 2024, Kelly was first-team All-Conference USA and a second-team returner. He had a punt-return touchdown that season.<\/p>\n
12. KC Eziomume, CB, Tulane<\/p>\n
Size and speed. That\u2019s the allure of Eziomume, who didn\u2019t play much for Tulane\u2019s defense last season (seven games, one pass defensed). He\u2019s 6-1 1\/2, 194 pounds and ran a 4.38 40 at his pro day, which would have tied for second fastest among corners at this year\u2019s combine. In 2024 at Albany, he had six pass breakups. Eziomume can fly, and he has the size Allen prefers at corner. Cornerback is well-stocked, so Eziomume\u2019s best route to sticking around Halas Hall is by earning a practice squad spot.<\/p>\n
13. Squirrel White, WR, Florida State<\/p>\n
White had a productive career in Tennessee for the Volunteers before spending last season with Florida State, where he caught only five passes. He\u2019s not big, and his 40 time isn\u2019t eye-opening. Brugler ranked White 176th among receivers. Like Kelly, he brings return experience \u2014 he had seven punt returns for 112 yards in 2024. He was also Darnell Wright\u2019s college teammate in 2022.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A deeper Chicago Bears roster means it\u2019s going to be more difficult for an undrafted rookie to make…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":631352,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[8850,399,398,396,397,99],"class_list":["post-631351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ncaa-football","tag-chicago-bears","tag-football","tag-ncaa","tag-ncaa-football","tag-ncaafootball","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=631351"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631351\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/631352"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=631351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=631351"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=631351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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