The Chicago Bears had one of the most proficient running games in the league last season. Rookie Kyle Monangai played a big role in that at first, but he hit a bit of a wall toward the end of the campaign, topping 50 rushing yards just once in the last six games, including the playoffs.
With that in mind, it wouldn't be surprising if the Bears had some doubts surrounding Monangai this offseason. The RB2 role is still his to lose; however, some competition might be needed to light a fire under him. Fortunately for Chicago, the Denver Broncos may have just helped with that need.
"The Broncos are not tendering running back Jaleel McLaughlin, per source. He will be a free agent," ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported on Friday. Now, the Bears have a new target to help motivate Monangai.
Jaleel McLaughlin Could Be Perfect Competition for Kyle Monangai
According to OverTheCap, the Bears are currently $6.48 million over the salary cap. That means they can't exactly afford to break the bank if they're looking to start an RB2 competition this offseason, which is why a cost-friendly option like McLaughlin makes too much sense to ignore.
McLaughlin has made a total of $2.7 million in his three years in the league, per Spotrac. And while he's clearly going to get much more than that in his new contract, he's not going to carry the same $8.8 million cap hit the Bears will have with Swift. In fact, OTC is listing his 2025 valuation at $936,000, making him well within Chicago's financial limits.
Monangai averaged 3.7 rushing yards per game in the final seven games (including the playoffs) after averaging 4.9 in his first 12 career games. He lost a step and wasn't as aggressive a tackle-breaker as he was earlier.
McLaughlin, on the other hand, averaged 4.8 yards per carry and has also proved to be a solid pass-catching back, averaging 6.8 yards per reception last season. Monangai was better at 9.1 yards per catch, but it wasn't a huge sample size, as he was only targeted 1.8 times per game.
The Bears would be wise to commit to Monangai, who's only 23 years old, but some friendly competition will never hurt.
Adding another young piece to their backfield would probably help light a fire under Monangai, letting him know that he can't take his foot off the gas just because of a solid rookie season. If he wants to become the Bears' RB1 one day, he'll have to show that he has another gear.
Monangai turned 169 carries into 783 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns as a rookie, averaging 4.6 yards per carry. Those numbers could go up with another year of experience under his belt, but there's no such thing as too much running back depth, making McLaughlin someone who must be on the Bears' radar when free agency opens next week.