Overlooked Reason Revealed On Why Ryan Poles Will Go Left Tackle At #10

Discussions about the #10 overall pick have reached a fever pitch with less than a week to go for the 2025 NFL draft. The Chicago Bears are in an interesting spot. GM Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson can go in almost any direction they wish, offensively or defensively. It may only depend on how the board falls through the first nine picks. Maybe it will be a premier running back or a playmaking tight end. They could shore up the defensive line with another pass rusher. However, it appears many credible experts think it will be a left tackle.

Most think the reasoning for this is uncertainty around the future of Braxton Jones. He has one year left on his rookie deal and is coming off an ankle injury. Upgrading that spot after rebuilding the interior in free agency would be a great way to set the offensive line up for long-term success. Those are valid reasons, to be sure. Still, Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network believes there is another reason Poles will target that position in the 1st round. That is the overall depth of this draft class. Put simply, if the Bears don't get a left tackle early, they're better off not getting one at all.

In terms of positions that you probably don’t want to wait on, if you are dead set on getting an offensive tackle and you want to get your long-term left tackle, you’re going to want to do that with your first pick. I just don’t love the possibilities of you seeing someone that’s going to be an upgrade over what you have once you get into the second round of this particular draft.

So that would be kind of the thought process there. If it’s close with some of the other players, I could see them leaning in that direction and checking a tackle off the list. There are backs. There are tight ends. There’s a good bit of depth there.

Ryan Poles understands this reality all too well.

Dating all the way back to his time in Kansas City, he's never been part of a team that drafted an offensive tackle in the 2nd round. It was always the 3rd round or later if they didn't grab one early. This is likely a philosophy he picked up from Andy Reid, who learned the lesson the hard way when his Philadelphia Eagles took Winston Justice in the 2nd round in 2006. He was a considerable disappointment. After that, it was either a 1st round pick or somebody talented enough they could develop with a cheaper pick later in a draft.

Ryan Poles seems to have followed the same blueprint since arriving in Chicago. Darnell Wright was their 1st round pick in 2023. Outside of that, the only other additions were Braxton Jones (5th round) and Kiran Amegadjie (3rd round). Put it this way. The last 2nd round offensive tackle selected who made a Pro Bowl in his career was Brian O'Neill, and he was drafted in 2018. Before that, it was Mitchell Schwartz in 2012. The vast majority of great players at the position came in the 1st round, with a smattering of names surfacing later in their careers as later picks. Waiting until the 2nd is a losing proposition or the Bears.