The 2025 NFL Draft now is behind us, and the Chicago Bears came away from the event with eight picks, highlighted by Michigan tight end Colston Loveland at No. 10 overall.

It was another spike in Bears optimism, which has been sky high since coach Ben Johnson was hired in January. Some questioned why the Bears made certain additions in the three-day draft, and we add some clarity in this Wednesday edition of Bair Mail.

We go over who general manager Ryan Poles took, why he took them and how that impacts the Bears.

Let’s get right to it in our first post-draft mailbag.

Brian Damschen from Rockford, Ill.

What do you think the Bears will do at left tackle? Is the second-round pick an option there?

Bair: The Bears will try some different things at left tackle, especially while incumbent starter Braxton Jones continues to rehab from ankle surgery.

“That will be an interesting one,” Poles said in Saturday’s post-draft press conference. “We’ll huddle back up as a staff after the weekend and figure out how we want to assign guys. Right side, left side going forward. Obviously with Braxton being out for the springtime, there are a lot of reps to be had. And we feel like we’re going to have some big opportunities for a number of guys to get better this spring.”

Second-round pick Ozzy Trapilo will practice on both sides in an effort to show the Bears what he can do to get on the field as fast as possible.

Here’s an interesting possibility: Trying Darnell Wright on the left side. Not all offensive linemen are effective after switching positions, so the experiment might not work. And Wright has developed into a quality right tackle, so you don’t want to make two positions worse with the switch. But he played left tackle in college, so it’s not a complete shock, and the Bears have the spring to try it out.

Jones will be a factor in all this, too, and should compete to retain his starting spot. He has been good there, but the Bears are trying to create competition all over the place. Left tackle could be an area of intrigue this spring as the Bears analyze their options.

John P. Watkins from Chicago

Never occurred to you the bears have what THEY need? Ben Johnson knows better than anyone what it will take to make HIS system work. I trust Ben…. if he feels he’s got the running backs he needs, that should be good enough for ALL of us!

Bair: We’ve talked a bunch, especially on the latest Bears on the Marquee Podcast, about having some faith in Ben Johnson. That mostly was directed at the Loveland selection, when some fans wondered why the Bears took him over Tyler Warren. In that case, the Bears had their pick of the litter and went with Loveland because of his fit.

I don’t look at the running back situation in the same light. Sometimes the board falls in a way where a positional need is easy to fill. Other times, it’s more difficult. The Bears just missed a few running back runs — especially in the second and fourth round. Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson went just before the Bears picked at No. 39. Four runners went before the Bears selected in the fourth round. They just kept missing out until they landed Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai in the seventh round.

I considered running back a team need because it was a position they wanted to address early and didn’t. That happens sometimes, and the Bears were smart to follow their board and not reach for a runner.

“Every draft has just pockets that you just don’t fall into,” Poles said. “Again, if you’re going to be disciplined, you’re going to let the board dictate how you do things, and it just happens that way. Because of that, you wind up in some really cool situations in acquiring talented players who might come from a different position than you maybe would have liked them to. But at the end of the day, you’re increasing the talent on your football team. And I do think you can get into a lot of trouble when you start trying to manipulate things to get into certain pockets where it ends up hurting your team long-term.” 

Scott Wing from Evanston, Ill.

The Luther Burden pick seemed odd to me, considering how loaded we are at WR. Why did we add another one so high in the second round?

Bair: This question plays into the question before it. I believe the Bears were looking for a running back at No. 39, and the New England Patriots took Henderson at No. 38. The Bears stayed true to their board and went with someone who had first-round physical skills but still was available early in the second round.

The Bears already have DJ Moore, Rome Odunze and Olamide Zaccheaus in the works, and Loveland also will occupy a spot in the pattern.

Fitting Burden into the mix might test Johnson’s creativity, but he has plenty to spare. Burden wasn’t thrilled to be a second-round pick, but he’s motivated to make a positive impression as a rookie.

As Johnson has referenced before, don’t look at Burden as a receiver. Look at him as an offensive weapon.

“For 6-foot, 200-plus pounds, it’s rare to see somebody with his movement skills,” Johnson said. “He can stop on a dime and accelerate just like that. Give him a little bit of space and he can make big things happen. A dangerous player, a weapon — call him what you want — but I see big things in his future.”