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2025 NFL mock draft: Bears land a top tackle in first round

alyssa barbieri, bears wire
·2 min read

The Chicago Bears have plenty of roster needs heading into the offseason, and they're guaranteed a top-10 pick in the 2025 NFL draft to help them land a stud at a position of need.

But there's no bigger need on this roster than at multiple positions along the offensive line, where right tackle Darnell Wright is the only player who should be a returning starter in 2025. In a new mock draft from For The Win's Christian D’Andrea, the Bears manage to land a top offensive tackle in this draft class.

With Chicago currently positioned at No. 9 -- for the second straight year -- D’Andrea has them selected Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons, who is jockeying for that third OT spot behind Will Campbell and Kelvin Banks.

Here's what FTW had to say:

This year’s crop of blocking talent isn’t quite good enough to justify three top 10 picks. But the Bears’ offensive line continues to be anathema to a young quarterback’s development. Caleb Williams’s 67 sacks are the most the NFL has seen since David Carr’s rookie campaign in the first season of the Houston Texans’ existence.

That creates the urgency to pick up whichever offensive lineman is shooting up draft boards across the league. At the moment, that’s Simmons, who has used Ohio State’s playoff run to gain a minor edge over similarly rated prospects like Aireontae Ersery, Josh Conerly Jr. and Wyatt Milum. Simmons has the chops to fix things as a Day 1 starter both as a freshman at San Diego State and a transfer with the Buckeyes the last two seasons. He’s long armed and powerful with the low center of gravity that should help him recover from rookie mistakes.

Simmons suffered a season-ending knee injury in a loss to the Oregon Ducks back in October. But there are some who believe Simmons would've been the No. 1 offensive tackle in this draft class had he not suffered his injury.

There's still some jockeying to be had in the final draft order, depending on how Week 18 shakes out. But the Bears certainly appear primed to select and offensive tackle with their top-10 selection to help shore up the offensive line in front of quarterback Caleb Williams.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: 2025 NFL mock draft: Bears land a top tackle in first round