The Chicago Bears need to make sure they make a splash during the 2026 NFL Draft. Even after their free agent moves, the team has some holes that they need to address. General manager Ryan Poles has some decisions to make when they are on the clock, but who should be on the team’s draft board. Let’s take a look at the latest mock draft by one of the people who do this for a living.
The Chicago Bears select Missouri Tigers defensive end Zion Young in Mel Kiper Jr’s mock draft
In his latest one-round mock draft, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr has the Bears selecting defensive end Zion Young in the 2026 NFL Draft. Below is his reasoning for the selection:
“The Bears had 35 sacks (tied for 22nd) and a lowly 28.0% pressure rate (29th) last season. Montez Sweat had 10 of those sacks, but there wasn’t much beyond him. Dayo Odeyingbo was signed last offseason to be the second guy off the edge, but he managed one sack over eight games before an Achilles injury ended his season. Despite struggling to find consistent quarterback pressure for a few years now, Chicago hasn’t used a top-50 pick on an edge rusher since Leonard Floyd went ninth in 2016.
“Let’s change that. Young had 6.5 sacks and 46 pressures last season, playing with power and a full-go motor. He’d bring some intensity to the Bears’ front.”
Young has a lot of experience in college football, playing four combined years at Michigan State and Missouri. Throughout 46 games, he recorded 131 total tackles (50 solo, 81 assisted) with 11.5 sacks, five pass deflections, one fumble recovery, and three forced fumbles.
Chicago certainly has a need to improve their pass rush. It will be intriguing to see if Young will be the pick for the Bears when they are officially on the clock.
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