Ryan Poles failed to address Bears' biggest need during NFL Draft

Ryan Poles failed to address Bears' biggest need during NFL Draft originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Chicago Bears and Ryan Poles had an interesting 2026 NFL Draft. They landed a steal in Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman in the first round, but followed it up with questionable picks down the board.

At the end of the day, the Bears' draft class wasn't a terrible one by any means, but there was one main issue with the class: Poles and company did not address their biggest need at edge rusher.

As ESPN's Courtney Cronin pointed out, the Bears are coming out of the NFL Draft with a big question regarding the team's pass rush. The Bears' defense still has a big issue at pass rusher, and the NFL Draft isn't around to give Chicago a chance for upgrades.

Bears top need wasn't addressed in NFL Draft

"The current pass rush needs work, and barring a trade that injects the D-line with impact talent, the Bears will rely on Dayo Odeyingbo, Austin Booker, and Shemar Turner to improve a unit that ranked 31st in pass rush win rate and 29th in pressure percentage last season," Cronin writes.

After taking Theineman in Round 1, the Bears took center Logan Jones in Round 2, tight end Sam Roush in Round 3, wide receiver Zavion Thomas in Round 3, cornerback Malik Muhammad in Round 4, and linebacker Keyshaun Elliot in Round 5.

Finally, the last pick of their 2026 NFL Draft class was a defensive lineman, as they added interior defensive lineman Jordan Van Den Berg in Round 6.

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