There's that moment near the end of every whodunnit when the detective finally pieces everything together. Often, we the audience get a flashback to see how every piece of evidence and every seemingly insignificant detail should have led us to one obvious conclusion the whole time. The detective gets his man, we slap our foreheads, and everyone lives happily ever after.
Months from now, when we all look back on the breadcrumbs that were left to us, we're going to wonder how we didn't realize sooner that Ashton Jeanty would end up becoming a Chicago Bear.
Jeanty has been loosely linked to the Bears for a while now. He mentioned Chicago as a place he'd like to play in a radio interview last year, and his selection would make sense for new head coach Ben Johnson, whose Detroit Lions traded away D'Andre Swift and drafted Jahmyr Gibbs in 2023. Jeanty also interviewed with the Bears at the combine and reportedly has a top-30 visit already set up with them.
Using premium draft picks on running backs has fallen out of vogue in recent years, but the Gibbs selection has been a home run for the Lions. Given the way so many top running backs made an impact this year, from Saquon Barkley and Gibbs to Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs, NFL teams are slowly coming around to the idea that certain backs are worth the price.
What are the arguments against the Chicago Bears drafting Ashton Jeanty?
There have been a few impediments to the Bears drafting Jeanty, even if he is a tantalizing fit in the same backfield as Caleb Williams. One is D'Andre Swift, who was signed last year to a three-year, $24 million contract. Swift was a mild disappointment in his first season in Chicago, but it's fair to wonder if he would have been more productive behind a better and healthier offensive line.
Benching Swift for Jeanty would be an inefficient use of those funds, but cutting him would carry an over-$9 million cap hit, which is also less than ideal. The Bears still have over $45 million in cap space, but wasting a chunk of it on a player that's no longer on the roster isn't what you want to see, especially if the Bears are still hoping to make a splash in free agency.
Next are the myriad needs on the rest of the roster, specifically on the offensive and defensive lines. The Philadelphia Eagles got a historic season out of Barkley this past year, but they also had one of the most dominant offensive lines we've seen this decade, plus a deep and talented defensive line that made life miserable for Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl.
The Bears have a long way to go to catch the Eagles in that respect, but they've taken some major steps in recent days by making a couple of low-cost, high-upside trades. Last year, the guard spots were filled by the wildly disappointing Nate Davis and the perpetually injured Teven Jenkins. For just the cost of a sixth-round pick and a fourth-round pick, Bears general manager Ryan Poles has reportedly acquired Rams lineman Jonah Jackson and Chiefs All-Pro Joe Thuney. Those trades can become official on March 12th.
The Bears were thought to be all-in on chasing Kansas City's other guard, Trey Smith, in free agency, but that plan went out the window when the Chiefs decided to use their franchise tag on him. Poles' decisive action has immediately turned an area of need into a potential strength though, and we haven't even hit free agency yet.
The Bears have been tied to several offensive lineman with that 10th pick, including LSU's Will Campbell, Missouri's Armand Membou, Texas' Kelvin Banks Jr. and Ohio State's Josh Simmons. With Jackson and Thuney added to the young foundation of Darnell Wright and Braxton Jones, the need to select one of those players goes away.
Even if the Bears feel that they've taken care of their offensive line, and even if they're able to sign a couple of impact defensive linemen in free agency, there are still some that argue that the depth of this year's running back class makes Jeanty an unnecessary pick.
It's true that there are several running back prospects that could be in line to have very good NFL careers. North Carolina's Omarion Hampton was super productive in college, and he tested extremely well at the combine. Arizona State's Cam Skattebo showed enough against Texas in the College Football Playoff to be worthy of a starting job off of that game alone. Iowa's Kaleb Johnson, Ohio State's Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, and Kansas' Devin Neal are just a few of the other available backs that have impressed, as well.
Here's why the Bears should draft Ashton Jeanty
All of those backs are intriguing in their own way, but they're not Jeanty. It's like arguing against driving a Lamborghini because you have a perfectly serviceable Toyota in the garage. Sometimes it just feels good to go fast, you know?
Jeanty is the complete package at running back. He has breakaway speed and the vision to maximize his yardage on every carry. In the open field, he has the moves to make tacklers miss and the power to go through them if they don't. His balance calls to mind Alvin Kamara. He hasn't been perfect in blitz pick-up, but he's always shown a willingness to take on blockers. The Bears can coach improvement out of him in that area.
Any college football fan could tell you that not a Saturday went by without seeing Jeanty break at least one or two long runs. He finished as the Heisman runner-up by rushing for a laughable 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns on seven yards per carry. If not for Travis Hunter's two-way dominance, Jeanty would have cruised to the award.
If anybody should understand the value of an elite running back, it's the Chicago Bears. This is a franchise that can boast Red Grange, Gale Sayers, Walter Payton and Matt Forte. Grange signed with the Bears in 1925. Jeanty could be the heir apparent to that century-old tradition.
Ben Johnson knows what he's doing with an electric running back. He's shown that with how he used Gibbs in Detroit. Do the Bears have other needs? Sure, but so does every other team. Letting ultra-talented players like Jeanty slide is how teams like the Eagles are able to steal players like Cooper Dejean. Tenth is high for a running back, but Jeanty is more than deserving of that high grade.
Jeanty can be a difference-maker on Day One. Barring injury, I'm willing to go on a limb and say there's no way he would fail on this team. Not with this coach, this quarterback, and his own vast skill set.
Nearly three weeks ago, I wrote a piece that advocated for the Bears trading Swift and taking Jeanty with the 10th pick. My one condition was that Poles needed to address at least two needs up front to be able to justify it. He's already done that by trading for Jackson and Thuney, and he still has the entire free agency period to go after guys like Drew Dalman and Khalil Mack.
By time we reach the draft, Jeanty to the Bears will be at a fever pitch. Unless someone takes him even earlier, Bears fans should get ready to hear his name called at No. 10.