Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai works on the field during the NFL football team’s rookie … More
Having gotten their first look at rookie Kyle Monangai in a Bears uniform, it’s time for Ryan Poles and Ben Johnson to decide if they’re satisfied with their team’s inventory of running backs.
This could be the week we find out if they see a need to reach out to add a veteran from the list of free agents still on the market: Nick Chubb, J.K. Dobbins, Jamaal Williams, Jeff Wilson and Cam Akers, among others.
“We really want to get this new coaching staff with the players that we have to see if they believe that they can help us,” Poles, the Bears’ general manager, said on ESPN 1000 in early May. “But we’ll always keep our eye on the short list to see if we need to bring someone in to create competition and raise the level of talent in that room.”
D’Andre Swift, who enters the second season of a three-year, $24-million deal, handled 78 percent of running back rush attempts in 2024. He delivered lukewarm returns (3.8 yards per carry) but could benefit greatly from the addition of Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman and Jonah Jackson in Poles’ overhaul of the offensive line.
Poles reportedly tried to trade up in the draft for Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson but watched New England grab him one pick ahead of the Bears in the second round. Rather than move on to the next back on their list, the Bears added a receiving weapon in Luther Burden III and waited until the seventh round to select Monangai, who had 2541 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns in his last two seasons at Rutgers.
This could be a great opportunity for Monangai to emerge as at least a third-down back if Poles decides not to someone like Chubb or Dobbins. Undrafted free agents Ian Wheeler and Deion Hankins join third-year back Roschon Johnson and special-team standout Travis Homer on the roster.
Wheeler, a graduate of Howard University who is deferring his acceptance to medical school, opened eyes in training camp last year before tearing an ACL in the final preseason game. He’s an interesting guy to watch after spending the 2024 season on injured reserve, getting healthy and anticipating his second chance.
But for the time being, the eyes of new running backs coach Eric Bieniemy, Johnson and Poles are mostly on Monangai.
One of his new teammates, former Maryland linebacker Ruben Hyppolite II, believes the Bears landed a huge value. He said during the recent rookie mini-camp he ranked Monangai ahead of all the running backs in the Big Ten, including Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins and Henderson.
“I tell everybody that he’s the best running back I faced in my career in the Big Ten,” Hyppolite said on a CHGO podcast. “He has a great ability to run behind his pads, he’s fast and slippery. He knows how to get through the holes and he knows how to finish runs. He’s physical … I played him for about three, four years, so I had to see him every year. It was always a good battle.”
Johnson’s offenses in Detroit featured tandem running backs the last two seasons, with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs combining for 3045 yards. NFL insiders are skeptical he’ll trust his backfield to Swift and a combination of unproven backs, putting veterans like Dobbins and Chubb into play.
While Chubb has had the better career, Dobbins is coming off a better season in 2024. He failed to put his injury-prone reputation behind him, missing games with knee and ankle injuries, he helped the Chargers reach the playoffs with 905 rushing yards and 32 receptions, both career highs. At 26, he’s three years younger than Chubb.
Chubb played like a Hall of Famer in his first five seasons in Cleveland, he averaged only 3.3 yards per carry last season in his return from a devastating injury to his left knee in 2023. The Browns had signed him to a one-year deal for only $2.275 million and appear to have decided to move on. They drafted two running backs (Judkins and Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson).
Chubb believes he can become a force again in his second season after rehab, posting on Instagram a post that showed him lifting more than 500 pounds. “They’ve already wrote my ending when I’m just getting started,” Chubb wrote.
Pro Football Focus never ranked Chubb below seventh in the five-season run when he carried the Browns with an average of 1,268 rushing yards. But the PFF graders had 112th among 139 running backs last season. There’s a question if the juice is still worth the squeeze.
Another option is a trade for a veteran. Najee Harris, signed by the Chargers before they drafted Omarion Hampton in the first round, is a possibility. Ditto Cleveland’s Jerome Ford, the Chubb replacement who will be challenged by Judkins and Sampson.
It’s time for Poles to make his call so all the newcomers can become comfortable in Johnson’s offense before training camp.
