For 30 of the NFL’s 32 teams, it’s officially draft season. The 2025 Senior Bowl kicked off its week of practices, and several prospects will emerge from Mobile, Alabama as first-round players. And whenever a new batch of first-round talent surfaces, 2025 mock drafts become a lot more fun.
For the Chicago Bears, the latest NFL mock draft from Pro Football Focus doesn’t include a Senior Bowl player. It’s an underclassman considered the nation’s top offensive lineman: LSU’s Will Campbell.
“Chicago’s new head coach, Ben Johnson, knows how critical an offensive line is to a team’s success,” PFF’s Max Chadwick wrote. “During his tenure as the Detroit Lions’ offensive coordinator, his offenses consistently featured one of the best front-fives in the league. So, with the Bears needing some help on the interior, they go with Campbell here.”
There’s no doubt GM Ryan Poles will value Campbell highly as the 2025 NFL draft inches closer. He plays a premium position — even if his NFL upside is at guard — from a powerhouse program in the SEC and has the kind of work ethic and football IQ that Poles and the Bears covet.
LSU’s Will Campbell squatting 616 LBS🤯
— PFF College (@PFF_College) July 19, 2024
Yeah, give me that guy.
The problem facing the Chicago Bears is that Campbell might not make it to the 10th pick. With Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons having serious medical red flags because of his knee injury, Campbell will likely be viewed as the safest plug-and-play offensive lineman in the early first-round range.
Perhaps Campbell’s unsure NFL projection will cause him to slide a few spots. Most teams won’t spend a top-10 pick on a guard, and there’s a very good chance Campbell ends up as an interior lineman in the league (a lot like Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski).
That’s not an issue for the Bears; they need starters at both guard spots.
Chicago is expected to go all-in on offensive linemen in free agency and the early rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft, making Will Campbell a perfect fit.
Haven’t watched a single lick of his film but LSU OT Will Campbell is already at the top of my list
This guy is dripping with the leadership intangible and you have to have this type of mindset to be successful on the OL pic.twitter.com/io7hrmHgRs
— Brad (@Graham_SFN) January 1, 2025
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