Bears address pass rush at No. 25 in Mel Kiper's latest mock draft

The Chicago Bears still have some big position needs to address following the first wave of free agency, most notably in the defensive trenches. General manager Ryan Poles said there was a reason they didn't make a big move at defensive line during free agency, which points to building the defensive line out through the 2026 NFL Draft. Poles has mentioned that the edge rusher class is a deep one in this draft, but the Bears have always had a best-available mindset when approaching the draft, which led to landing wide receiver Luther Burden III last year.

Still, given the multitude of needs across the board, it's a safe bet that Chicago goes defensive line with their first selection. ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. revealed his latest mock draft, which has the Bears addressing their pass rush with the selection of Missouri edge rusher Zion Young with the 25th overall pick.

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.