Grading the Bears' selection of Sam Roush in 2026 NFL Draft

Grading the Bears' selection of Sam Roush in 2026 NFL Draft

The Chicago Bears shocked the NFL world with their third-round selection of Stanford tight end Sam Roush at 69th overall, adding a player at a position that was not of big need or importance this offseason.

The Bears made their first trade of the 2026 NFL draft by moving back from pick No. 60 in a trade with the Tennessee Titans, acquiring picks No. 69 and 144 in the third and fifth rounds this weekend.

After selecting Colston Loveland in the first round in last year's draft, and already having veteran Cole Kmet on the roster, tight end felt to be one of the positions with the least amount of concern. But it's clear the Bears -- specifically head coach Ben Johnson -- see something in Roush. The disappointment in the selection comes from the Bears having much bigger needs on both the offensive and defensive line before they needed a third tight.

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Here's our initial draft grade for Chicago's selection of Sam Roush:

Grade: C

Roush was an unnecessary choice, not because he's a bad player but the tight end position was not one of need, and there were plenty of options available at other needs. Chicago had opportunities to bring in an offensive tackle, or edge rusher, potentially even a wide receiver if they wanted an offensive weapon, but they decided to bring in a guy who will be the third tight end on the depth chart from the start. Roush didn't jump off the paper in box scores, and feels more as a short-field threat than a deep threat, but head coach Ben Johnson proved he knew what he was doing with the selection with Loveland last season, so only time will tell.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears select Sam Roush: Grading Chicago's pick in NFL Draft