What the Bears First-Round Pick Brings to the Defense in 2026
The Chicago Bears selected safety Dillon Thieneman with their 25th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. The Bears had a lot of departures this offseason, especially at the defensive back position. This list includes safeties Kevin Byard III and Jaquan Brisker, along with cornerback Nashon Wright. Chicago led the league in takeaways in 2025, but ranked 29th overall in total yards allowed and 23rd overall in points allowed. General manager Ryan Poles decided to reset on defense, including acquiring safety Coby Bryant from the Seattle Seahawks. While the signing was celebrated amongst Bears fans, questions still remained as to who would play opposite him, but that has now been answered.
Thieneman was projected not to be available by the time the Bears were up to make their selection, even with lots of discussions of him ending up with division rival the Minnesota Vikings. Despite the noise, the former Oregon Duck landed in the hands of Chicago, a decision that has been highly respected amongst the league. He stands at six feet, 201 pounds, beginning his college career at Purdue University for his first two seasons. After one year at Oregon, he’d end his collegiate career with 306 tackles, eight interceptions, two sacks, and two forced fumbles. Thieneman ran a 4.35 in the 40-yard dash, showing off his quick speed that has brought him success so far in his football career. The speedster can play both strong and free safety, along with playing at the nickel back position. Now that the 21-year-old has become a Chicago Bear, their issues have been solved at the safety position, but some questions in other places remain.
While the defensive back position needed to be addressed, this decision has once again neglected the Bears' issues at defensive line. The pass rush struggled all season long last year for Chicago, being unable to create pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The Bears will still have six more picks remaining for the draft, leaving them room to find someone who can compete for the position across from defensive lineman Montez Sweat. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen should expect a majority of the picks remaining to be on his side of the ball and have plenty of options available for who will be his starters in 2026. Until then, Chicago can expect a major superstar in Thieneman, who they hope can stay for years to come.
