With the days counting down until the NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears have a world of possibilities. The Bears are in a great spot, owning the 10th overall pick on Thursday night and four selections in the top 72 picks this weekend. But while Bears fans are excited about who could join the team, it’s a different situation for players who are already on the roster.
Some players will need to keep the heartburn medication nearby as they watch the names fly off the board during the draft. While a player’s spot may be secure entering the draft, they can go on the bubble with one pick and have their future flipped upside down.
For one Bears playmaker, the smoke screen may have already caused some anxiety, and it may have him on the way out of town if the Bears land who they want.
Cole Kmet Should Fear Bears' Tyler Warren Rumors Ahead of NFL Draft
There’s been a lot of talk about the Bears’ offense heading into the draft, and for good reason. Matt Eberflus’s decision to tab Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator a year ago set the organization in flames, and mostly everyone on that staff is gone as Ben Johnson takes over.
Many have focused on the running game and Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty as someone the Bears would like to target in the draft, but they may have to pivot if the Heisman Trophy finalist is off the board. Should that happen, the Bears would likely add another playmaker and could go with Penn State’s Tyler Warren.
Warren was a beast for the Nittany Lions last year, catching 104 passes for 1,233 yards and eight touchdowns. A versatile chess piece in Penn State offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki’s scheme, he fits the same receiving threat that Johnson had in Detroit, first with T.J. Hockenson and then with Sam LaPorta.
It’s a different type of tight end than the Bears have had in past seasons, and it’s the kind of player they wish Cole Kmet would be. Kmet was a second-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and broke out with 60 catches for 612 scoreless yards during the 2021 season. He followed it up with 50 catches for 544 yards and seven touchdowns in 2022 and earned a four-year, $50 million contract extension the following year.
But while Kmet caught 73 passes for 719 yards and six touchdowns in 2023, he slumped to just 47 passes for 474 yards and four touchdowns in the first year of the extension last season.
Even worse? Kmet was one of the league’s most inefficient tight ends, averaging 0.91 yards per route run according to Pro Football Focus. That number ranked 40th out of 45 qualifiers and was light years from the 1.56 yards per route run LaPorta posted in Johnson’s offense with the Lions and the 2.78 that Warren put up at Penn State.
You could talk yourself into Kmet thriving under Johnson, but the truth is that Warren is a superior player even though he hasn’t played a down in the NFL. The Bears can’t get rid of Kmet before the draft as his release would cost them $3.1 million in cap space if it happens before June 1, but they could move on next season when the Bears would save $8.4 million.
There’s also the possibility of a trade, but that seems unlikely considering Kmet has matching $11.6 million cap hits for the next three seasons. It puts Kmet on notice going into the draft and could give him plenty of competition if the Bears choose to go with Warren.