The draft, held held this year in Pittsburgh, begins Thursday, with the first round starting at 7 p.m. Central time. The second and third rounds will take place Friday, with rounds four through seven held Saturday.
The Chicago Bears have seven picks in the draft, starting at No. 25.
“We feel prepared. We put in the time,” general manager Ryan Poles said on Tuesday. “When we’re on the clock, I’ve got a ton of confidence things are going to work out just the way we planned them to be. If things start to shift and move, we’re agile enough to make adjustments if that’s moving up, moving back, we’ll be ready for anything that comes our way.”
The draft comes as the battle over a new Bears stadium continues, with a location still not set in stone. Wednesday, a mega projects bill passed out of an Illinois House committee in Springfield and then the full House after lawmakers spent weeks working to address concerns and criticism.
Shortly after the bill passed, the Bears released a statement saying they weren’t quite satisfied.
“We welcome the progress made on the House’s version of the mega project bill; however, additional amendments are necessary to make the Arlington Heights site feasible for our stadium project,” the statement said. “We support Illinois leaders as they determine the path forward to making the essential changes to the mega project bill and aligning on infrastructure funding.”
As the draft gets underway, here’s what to know.
NFL Draft start time
The seven-round draft begins at 7 p.m. Central time Thursday, April 23.
The second and third rounds take place Friday. Rounds four, five, six and seven will be held on Saturday, April 25.
Could the Chicago Bears land one of the top defensive tackles in this year’s NFL Draft class? Here’s what Lou Canellis has to say.
Bears draft picks
The Bears own a total of seven picks, including three in the first 60 picks of the draft. Here’s how that breaks down:
Round 1:
The Bears have the 25th pick in round one. They earned that spot by reaching the NFC Divisional Playoffs, where they lost to the Los Angeles Rams.
Round 2:
The Bears have pick 57 and 60 in round two. They earned those picks after trading wide receiver DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills during the offseason.
Other picks
The Bears also own picks 89 in the third round, 129 in the fourth round and picks 239 and 241 in the seventh round.
The team traded their fifth round pick to the Bills in the Moore trade, and their sixth round pick went to the Cleveland Browns in a trade that brought defensive end Joe Tryon-Shoyinka to Chicago.
The Chicago Bears are undoubtedly looking to shore up their defensive line, but could Christen Miller be an option? Lou Canellis has more.
Top prospects in this year’s draft class
The top of this year’s draft class is loaded with plenty of defensive stars, but the likely No. 1 pick will be a quarterback, as most mock drafts have the Las Vegas Raiders selecting Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, fresh off winning the Heisman Trophy and a stunning national title with the Hoosiers.
Ohio State’s vaunted defense could be well-represented in the top-10, with safety Caleb Downs and linebackers Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese all expected to be top picks.
The Buckeyes’ talented wide receiver Carnell Tate could also be the top wide-out taken off the board, and Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love could be a high pick as teams look to add an explosive offensive talent to their squads.
Texas Tech linebacker David Bailey, Arizona State wide receiver Jordyn Tyson and LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane are also highly touted.
In terms of later selections in the first round where the Bears sit, there are several intriguing offensive linemen that could be available, including Alabama’s Kadyn Proctor, Utah’s Spencer Fano and Georgia’s Monroe Freeling.
The Bears could also seek pass rush help, with Missouri’s Zion Lee, Auburn’s Keldric Faulk and Miami’s Akheem Mesidor all projected as late-first round picks.
The Bears could also stun and decide to go with a wide receiver after trading Moore, with Washington’s Denzel Boston or Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion possible options.
The Las Vegas Raiders secured the No. 1 overall pick after going 3-14. Behind them, there are more than a dozen teams looking to change their fortunes heading into next season.
NFL draft order
Here is the first round order for this year’s draft:
1 Las Vegas Raiders
2 New York Jets
3 Arizona Cardinals
4 Tennessee Titans
5 New York Giants
6 Cleveland Browns
7 Washington Commanders
8 New Orleans Saints
9 Kansas City Chiefs
10 Cincinnati Bengals
11 Miami Dolphins
12 Dallas Cowboys
13 Los Angeles Rams
14 Baltimore Ravens
15 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
16 New York Jets
17 Detroit Lions
18 Minnesota Vikings
19 Carolina Panthers
20 Dallas Cowboys
21 Pittsburgh Steelers
22 Los Angeles Chargers
23 Philadelphia Eagles
24 Cleveland Browns
25 Chicago Bears
26 Buffalo Bills
27 San Francisco 49ers
28 Houston Texans
29 Kansas City Chiefs
30 Miami Dolphins
31 New England Patriots
32 Seattle Seahawks
The No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft comes with a massive payday. But their contract isn’t negotiated. Here’s how the rookie wage scale works, what first-round picks are guaranteed, and how much the last five No. 1 selections like Cam Ward and Caleb Williams earned.
How to watch: NFL Draft channel and more
The first round of the draft will begin at 7 p.m. Central time, and will air on NFL Network, ABC and ESPN.
The second and third rounds will get underway at 6 p.m. Central time on April 24, and the final four rounds will begin at 11 a.m. on April 25, airing on the same three networks.
All seven rounds of the draft will be available for streaming on NFL+, according to the league.
Fans who are in Chicago can buy tickets to the Bears’ NFL Draft Party, which will be held at Soldier Field beginning at 6 p.m. on the first day of the draft.
Starting 6:30 p.m., NBC 5 sports reporter Lou Cannelis and former Bears coach Dave Wannstedt will provide live analysis on NBC 5 and on the NBC Chicago streaming channel.
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