The Chicago Bears are sitting pretty in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Armed with the 10th pick in a draft class that should help fill their biggest needs in the first two rounds, general manager Ryan Poles can use his first-round pick in a number of ways.

The popular opinion right now is for the Bears to target the best available offensive lineman in Round 1, whether that’s LSU’s Will Campbell, Texas’ Kelvin Banks, Ohio State’s Josh Simmons, or someone not as well known, like Alabama’s Tyler Booker.

But there’s a darkhorse first-round target that the Bears might have: Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty.

Jeanty had one of the greatest single seasons in college football history in 2024 when he rushed for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns. His video game production has conjured NFL comps to Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson, and with new coach Ben Johnson’s love for the run game, Jeanty would make a ton of sense.

The feelings appear to be mutual, too.

Jeanty appeared on NBC’s Fantasy Football Happy Hour Podcast on Thursday and singled out the Chicago Bears as a “nice destination” for him to go to in the first round.

Check out the interview below:

“Those Chicago Bears sitting pretty nice at 10,” Jeanty said. “I think that might be a nice destination as well, but any team that would pick me in the top 10, that would be special.”

If there’s any running back worthy of that kind of draft investment, it’s Jeanty. He blends exceptional burst, vision, contact balance, and lateral agility with the toughness needed to shoulder an NFL rushing attack. As long as his physical stature checks out at the NFL Scouting Combine, it’ll be full steam ahead to a top-15 pick in April.

It’s no secret the Bears will be one of several teams looking to upgrade their running game in the 2025 NFL Draft, but it still feels like a long shot for Poles to make a first-round investment in the position. He’s been clear about his philosophy of targeting hard-to-find positions in the first round; running back isn’t that.

Still, if the Chicago Bears want to supercharge their offense under Ben Johnson, adding Ashton Jeanty in the first round would certainly get it done.

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