Their passion for the game fuels their success. Discover the single trait uniting the Bears' standout rookie class and driving their immediate impact.
Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles got a lot of return from the 2025 NFL Draft class.
The Bears took Colston Loveland, Luther Burden III, Ozzy Trapilo, Shemar Turner, Ruben Hyppolite II, Luke Newman, Zah Frazier and Kyle Monangai.
Loveland, Trapilo, Burden and Monangai were all starters for Chicago in their first season with the franchise. Having half of your rookies make significant contributions in year one is an excellent return on investment.
Monangai was a great option in the Bears' backfield, finishing with 783 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Loveland led the team with 713 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
Burden had a solid rookie campaign as well, recording 652 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
It took a minute for Trapilo win the starting job at left tackle. He won it in Week 12, but then was a solid anchor on the left side of the offensive line with Joe Thuney.
Poles spoke about the draft class at a recent press conference and noted how they all had one thing in common that made them so special. The GM mentioned their love for football as a theme in all of them.
He shared that the franchise looks for that in the rookies they draft, and that mentality won't stop when it comes to players.
"They all love football," Poles said. "It's passion for the game. That's one of our criteria that we have on this kind of gear to make it take. They love football. It only takes a few minutes being around Colston Loveland to know that he is so passionate about it. He wants to be great for his teammates. He loves ball. They all love ball, and that's a key thing. We'll continue to lean into that."
Unfortunately for Trapilo, his rookie season didn't end well.
Trapilo suffered a patellar injury in the 31-27 win over the Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card. The injury was revealed to be season-ending, but Poles shared that it will be a while before we see him on the field again.
Poles noted that it may not be until late in the 2026 season that Trapilo can play again. This means that the Bears may need to seriously consider re-signing either Theo Benedet or Braxton Jones, along with a veteran free agent.
For now, the focus is on preparing for the 2026 NFL Draft in April. Chicago has the 25th overall pick, and various mock drafts have emerged on who it should take.
With how well the rookies did in 2025, Poles has earned the trust of the fanbase.