Standard procedure for the Chicago Bears since Ryan Poles took over as GM has maintained a clear trend. Each of the team's 1st round picks knew well in advance that the team was interested. Darnell Wright knew the Bears were taking him if he was there at #10. Caleb Williams knew they were taking him #1 overall and Rome Odunze knew they badly wanted him at #9. One would imagine tight end Colston Loveland got the same vibes from Chicago ahead of the 2025 draft.
That was not the case.
Far from it, actually. Loveland appeared on The Rich Eisen Show, where he was asked if he was on the Bears' radar leading up to the draft. While he got the sense that they were interested in somebody from Michigan due to their attendance at his pro day, he wasn't sure it was him. This was largely due to his lower production last season and the shoulder injury he suffered late in the year. Loveland never got a clear signal that he was an option at #10, which made it all the more shocking when it happened.
Colston Loveland is far from the first to experience this.
There have been many instances over the years when the Bears drafted a player who didn't know they were interested. Cedric Benson didn't see it coming in 2005, having thought they were content with Thomas Jones. William Perry didn't think they'd take him in the 1st round in 1985. It isn't exclusive to Chicago, either. Other teams ended up picking players who had zero idea they were interested. Colston Loveland isn't upset about it. His lone meeting with the team went well. It was the lack of a follow-up that left him uncertain.
Either the Bears played their hand perfectly, throwing other teams off the scent, or the board didn't fall how they'd hoped and they just took the best player. Neither possibility is bad. The former shows their ability to run a tight ship, not allowing any information to leak. The latter shows they're disciplined enough not to reach at a position of need. If Loveland pans out as many expect, that pick will be remembered as one of Poles' best.
