The first eight weeks of the 2025 season have not exactly gone to plan for Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet.
Coming into the season, the hope was that the veteran tight end would bounce back after a down 2024 campaign under the direction of new head coach Ben Johnson, who has gotten the most out of his tight ends in Detroit.
However, that hasn’t happened, as Kmet only has nine receptions (19 targets) for 132 yards and a touchdown in six games. With his struggles, the idea of Chicago trading Kmet didn't sound too far-fetched.
At the same time, one could also say that it's not all Kmet's fault. The TE position overall for Chicago hasn’t gotten on track, as rookie Colston Loveland hasn’t found his groove yet either.
But Loveland will get more grace and time to grow since he’s a rookie. Nonetheless, Kmet, who missed last week’s game due to a back injury, hopes to be back on the field this week.
Cole Kmet Can Change His 2025 Season with Breakout Game vs. Bengals
He’s practiced in a limited fashion for two straight days, which is a good sign. If he can play, that bodes well for him and the Bears’ offense against the Cincinnati Bengals’ defense. However, if he does not play, then Loveland has a chance to really put Kmet’s future in Chicago in doubt.
If there were any week for Kmet to have that standout game, it would be on Sunday against the Bengals.
This season, Cincinnati’s defense has struggled to cover opposing teams’ tight ends, allowing 74.3 yards, 6.8 receptions, and 10 targets per game. They’ve also given up 10 touchdowns, which is the most in the NFL heading into Week 9.
Then, when you factor in veteran linebacker Logan Wilson, who will likely miss the game due to injury, it screams Bears’ tight ends should eat against Cincinnati. As we alluded to earlier, the veteran tight end missed last week’s game with a back injury.
And Loveland took advantage of no Kmet, as he had his best game of the season thus far with three receptions (five targets) for 38 yards. It was also the second consecutive week that the rookie had at least three receptions and four or more targets.
The Bears clearly want to get Loveland more involved, as they did spend a first-round pick on him earlier this year. However, Kmet can make that target share a bit closer if he can play on Sunday.
We saw in Week 4 against the Las Vegas Raiders that when Loveland was hurt, Kmet had three receptions (nine targets) for 46 yards. The talent is there with the veteran tight end; it just hasn’t manifested itself as we’ve seen in previous years. However, a big game (health permitting) could give him a chance to show the Bears why they need to keep him around.