May is here, and the Chicago Bears' roster already looks much different now that the 2025 NFL draft is behind them. The Bears left Lambeau Field with a handful of promising rookies while adding even more through the undrafted free agent market, giving Chicago fans a future that they can be excited about.
The Bears expanded several positions' depth through the draft process, including the running back room. Chicago used a seventh-round pick on former Rutgers RB Kyle Monangai before signing ex-Texas State runner Deion Hankins as a UDFA after the draft ended, leaving time to tell if either rookie can fight their way onto the roster.
Bears GM Ryan Poles Doesn't Mention D'Andre Swift When Discussing RB Room
On Thursday, Bears general manager Ryan Poles discussed his team's backfield. Interestingly enough, the 39-year-old front-office executive omitted a certain veteran's name when discussing the RB room's outlook.
"Poles said it's a good room. He's excited about (RB coach) Eric Bieniemy," former NFL tight end and CHSN's Clay Harbor reported. "First person mentioned was Roschon (Johnson) playing a physical role, then mentioned Ian Wheeler and Kyle Monangai."
While it's important for a GM to hype up all his players, the fact that Poles didn't even mention veteran RB D'Andre Swift is bound to garner attention — especially when he signed a three-year, $24 million contract just last offseason.
At the same time, it wouldn't be surprising if Swift's underwhelming 2024 performance was a big reason behind Poles' snub.
After breaking 1,000 rushing yards for the first time last season, the ex-Georgia RB finished last season with only 959 on 253 carries, averaging a career-low 3.8 yards per attempt. Swift also finished the year with the eighth-worst offense (61.3) and seventh-worst rushing (65.7) grades among eligible RBs on Pro Football Focus.
The underwhelming performance has led to Swift being involved in trade rumors, especially now that a new coaching staff is taking over. Even though the veteran runner previously played under head coach Ben Johnson when the latter was the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator in 2022, it was Swift's least productive performance of the last four seasons.
The Bears have a few options regarding a potential offseason split. Trading Swift before June 1 would create over $6.66 million in cap savings, whereas a deal after that date would save $8 million, per Spotrac. A post-June 1 release would only save $610,000.
It'll be interesting to see what the Bears' backfield will look like if Swift is sent packing. Johnson and fellow vet RB Travis Homer have the most experience out of the other options. Meanwhile, Wheeler just missed his entire rookie season with a torn ACL, whereas Monangai and Hankins have yet to taste any sort of NFL action.
Bears fans won't have to wait too long before getting a taste of the RB room's future. Monangai and Hankns will be taking part in Chicago's three-day rookie minicamp, which begins on Friday, May 9; less than two weeks before organizaed team activities begin less than two weeks later.