After making one more trade in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears completed their draft class with the selection of Georgia Tech defensive tackle Jordan van den Berg with the 213th overall pick. The Bears traded both of their seventh round picks to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for the No. 213 selection.
Van den Berg, a native of South Africa with Rugby experience, projects as a good run stopper at the defensive tackle spot. Throughout the entire draft, the Bears elected not to address their defensive line until the selection of van den Berg, still leaving a need at edge rusher for their defense.
General manager Ryan Poles said on Friday night that he was confident in the returns of Shemar Turner and Dayo Odeyingbo this season, and they could be viewed as reasons why Chicago did not look to address edge rusher.
The Bears got a player in van den Berg who can be used in situational rotations to help improve their run defense when called upon. Here’s our initial reaction grade to Chicago’s selection of Jordan van den Berg:
Grade: B
It took quite a bit of time, but the Bears finally added on the defensive line and got a player who can contribute in the right situations, but he will certainly be a development project for the coaching staff. Van den Berg flew under the radar due to limited exposure, but broke out in a big way in his two seasons with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, where he had his best season in 2025, where he earned First-team All-ACC honors.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Grading the Bears’ selection of Jordan van den Berg in 2026 NFL Draft
Reporting by Mike Pendleton, Bears Wire / Bears Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
