And with that, the Chicago Bears have locked up all but one of their seven selections from the 2026 NFL Draft.
Whether the group will still be the “Chicago” Bears remains to be seen.
In addition to the roster news, the Bears also announced an update to their planned future stadium, which continues a years-long back-and-forth with the state of Illinois and the cities of Arlington Heights and, of course, Chicago.
Bears Roster Update Leads News Roundup
More Bears Draft Picks Sign
On Friday, the Bears announced that first-round pick Dillon Thieneman and second-rounder Logan Jones both signed their rookie contracts. As with all rookie contracts, the deals are slotted, which has taken a lot of the drama out of the process.
However, guarantees and structure have become the largest sticking points, with fully guaranteed contracts creeping into the second round last offseason.
That being said, some deals still take longer than others.
That appears to be the case with the Bears’ final unsigned pick, Sam Roush, one of their two selections in the third round. Their other third-round pick, Malik Muhammad signed his contract in May.
Roush has participated in the Bears’ offseason program in full so far. So, his contact status has not been a hindrance in that regard.
Still, the sooner the matter gets resolved the better, and that is true for both sides.
Notably, Thieneman and Jones are expected to at least contend for starting spots, while Roush is heading into a fairly defined backup role. Despite that, all three rookies could see the field extensively next season with how much the Bears run multi-tight-end sets.
Bears Stadium News Leaves Intriguing Plot Hole
The Bears shifted the narrative around their stadium back to Hammond, Indiana. They announced that their board of directors voted to proceed with the project and released a joint statement from owner and chairman George McCaskey and team president and CEO Kevin Warren.
Illinois and Indiana politicians on both sides of the argument for their respective states also chimed in as the battle to win the war of public opinion continued.
However, the potential move to Indiana would create an interesting situation for the league.
Would the league look or even hesitate to put another team in Chicago? How would they even get it done. Expansion would almost certainly require the creation of two teams to keep both conferences even, and definite realignment.
Moving an existing team seems like the cleanest option. However, it then becomes a question of which organization is ripe for the plucking?
Moreover, would the Bears’ experience be an obstacle?
With every turn, the Bears’ decisions have led to more questions. There have been no winners or heroes while fans sit and wait. That seems likely to continue for some time as the ordeal continues to drag out.
Former Bears QB Chase Daniel Challenges Caleb Williams
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has been the man of the hour following the official unveiling of Madden 27 featuring his visage in two different versions. He recently received a different kind of attention from former Bears QB Chase Daniel.
“I just want to see him play a little bit more within the system,” Daniels said on “NFL Live” on June 4.
“It was a learning year for him. That’s why it [completion percentage] was under 60%. If he can take the next step on just making the layups, … just the easy throws. We know he can be ‘Iceman,’ right? We know he can do that, and he’s done it at high cap. I want to see these guys not take the game into the fourth quarter every time. I want to see them put away some guys.”
Both Williams and Bears head coach Ben Johnson have called for similar improvements.
That will be one of the biggest storylines to monitor for the Bears during the rest of the offseason program. It is arguably second only to how they plan to manufacture a pass rush with many of the same parts from last season expected to turn things around in 2026.
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