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The Chicago Bears had a magical 2025 season under first-year head coach Ben Johnson, where they went from worst to first with an 11-6 record, NFC North title and the franchise's first playoff win in 15 years. And there's no denying that the future is bright.
While the Bears exceeded expectations in their first year under Johnson, there's still plenty of work to be done with this roster, most notably on defense. After overhauling the offense in the trenches and at skill positions, the focus shifts to the defense where the hope is general manager Ryan Poles does the same to round out this unit under defensive coordinator Dennis Allen and form a complete team with a top-five offense.
Here at Bears Wire, we're going position by position through the 2025 Bears and grading every player. Next up, we're looking at tight ends, where first-round rookie Colston Loveland looks primed to become a superstar in the NFL and Cole Kmet continues to excel as a blocker and pass catcher.
2025 stats: 58 receptions, 713 yards, 6 touchdowns
Talk about hitting on your first-round draft pick. The only grievance is that it took so long to get Colston Loveland involved in the passing game, but once the Bears did, he was electric. Loveland showed exactly why he was coveted by Ben Johnson at 10th overall with his receiver-like separation and pass catching ability. Loveland led the team in receptions (58) and receiving yards (713), and he really didn't even get going until midway through the 2025 season. In the final 12 games of the season (including two postseason contests), he caught 59 passes for 790 yards and six touchdowns.
Loveland's biggest game came against the Green Bay Packers in the wild-card playoffs, where he dominated that defense to the tune of eight catches for 137 yards and a two-point conversion, including some crucial receptions to help lead Chicago to a comeback win. Loveland led the Bears' rookie class across the board. He played the most snaps (818), led the team in WAR (0.514), led the team in PFF grade (85.3) and also ranked first among all rookie tight ends (85.3). It's clear that Loveland has the potential to be a superstar in the NFL. Now, just imagine what he can accomplish in Year 2 as the Bears' top pass-catching target and another year working with Ben Johnson.
Grade: A+
2025 stats: 30 receptions, 347 yards, 2 touchdowns
Following the selection of rookie Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet stepped back in the passing game and served as more of the Y-tight end in Ben Johnson's offense, where he was asked to block and catch passes. He statistically had his worst season since his rookie year, when he played second fiddle to veteran Jimmy Graham, but Kmet proved to be a reliable pass catcher for Caleb Williams and also improved as a blocker. But the salary cap isn't on his side. Kmet is set to have a $11.6 million cap hit in 2026, and with the emergence of Loveland in just his rookie season, it wouldn't be out of the question for the Bears to save some space by parting ways with Kmet. But the thing that Kmet does have going for him is that Johnson utilizes a lot of two tight end sets on offense, and Kmet could continue to prove valuable if Chicago can cut some cap space elsewhere.
Grade: B-
2025 stats: 4 receptions, 25 yards
When the Bears signed Durham Smythe last offseason, it wasn't to be an impact in the passing game. And yet, he did see a small share of targets (6) throughout the season. But make no mistake, Smythe was brought it to serve as a blocker in this Chicago run game. According to Pro Football Focus, Smythe was slightly better as a pass blocker (61.6 grade) than run blocking (53.2), but his above-average blocking remains his speciality and the reason he was on the roster. Smythe, who signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal last offseason, is slated to hit free agency, and we'll see if Chicago elects to bring him back for another year on a cheap deal.
Grade: C
There were high expectations about the tight-end duo of Cole Kmet and rookie Colston Loveland heading into the 2025 season with new head coach Ben Johnson utilizing 12 and 13 personnel, and Durham Smythe even brought something to the table with his blocking ability which allowed Kmet and Loveland to shine. While it took some time, Loveland exploded on the scene as one of Caleb Williams' top pass catchers and he's a budding superstar in this offense. With Loveland's emergence in the passing game, Kmet took a backseat in the passing game and became more of a blocking tight end. Kmet's dip in production, with just 30 receptions, was certainly a concern, but we'll see if Chicago sees him as a key part of the offense moving forward. All three tight ends also contributed in run blocking for the league's third-best rushing attack. But the tight ends group grades out with a B+ mostly for Loveland's breakout rookie season.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears TE review: Grading Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet in 2025
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While the Bears exceeded expectations in their first year under Johnson, there's still plenty of work to be done with this roster, most notably on defense. After overhauling the offense in the trenches and at skill positions, the focus shifts to the defense where the hope is general manager Ryan Poles does the same to round out this unit under defensive coordinator Dennis Allen and form a complete team with a top-five offense.
Here at Bears Wire, we're going position by position through the 2025 Bears and grading every player. Next up, we're looking at tight ends, where first-round rookie Colston Loveland looks primed to become a superstar in the NFL and Cole Kmet continues to excel as a blocker and pass catcher.
Colston Loveland
2025 stats: 58 receptions, 713 yards, 6 touchdowns
Talk about hitting on your first-round draft pick. The only grievance is that it took so long to get Colston Loveland involved in the passing game, but once the Bears did, he was electric. Loveland showed exactly why he was coveted by Ben Johnson at 10th overall with his receiver-like separation and pass catching ability. Loveland led the team in receptions (58) and receiving yards (713), and he really didn't even get going until midway through the 2025 season. In the final 12 games of the season (including two postseason contests), he caught 59 passes for 790 yards and six touchdowns.
Loveland's biggest game came against the Green Bay Packers in the wild-card playoffs, where he dominated that defense to the tune of eight catches for 137 yards and a two-point conversion, including some crucial receptions to help lead Chicago to a comeback win. Loveland led the Bears' rookie class across the board. He played the most snaps (818), led the team in WAR (0.514), led the team in PFF grade (85.3) and also ranked first among all rookie tight ends (85.3). It's clear that Loveland has the potential to be a superstar in the NFL. Now, just imagine what he can accomplish in Year 2 as the Bears' top pass-catching target and another year working with Ben Johnson.
Grade: A+
Cole Kmet
2025 stats: 30 receptions, 347 yards, 2 touchdowns
Following the selection of rookie Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet stepped back in the passing game and served as more of the Y-tight end in Ben Johnson's offense, where he was asked to block and catch passes. He statistically had his worst season since his rookie year, when he played second fiddle to veteran Jimmy Graham, but Kmet proved to be a reliable pass catcher for Caleb Williams and also improved as a blocker. But the salary cap isn't on his side. Kmet is set to have a $11.6 million cap hit in 2026, and with the emergence of Loveland in just his rookie season, it wouldn't be out of the question for the Bears to save some space by parting ways with Kmet. But the thing that Kmet does have going for him is that Johnson utilizes a lot of two tight end sets on offense, and Kmet could continue to prove valuable if Chicago can cut some cap space elsewhere.
Grade: B-
Durham Smythe
2025 stats: 4 receptions, 25 yards
When the Bears signed Durham Smythe last offseason, it wasn't to be an impact in the passing game. And yet, he did see a small share of targets (6) throughout the season. But make no mistake, Smythe was brought it to serve as a blocker in this Chicago run game. According to Pro Football Focus, Smythe was slightly better as a pass blocker (61.6 grade) than run blocking (53.2), but his above-average blocking remains his speciality and the reason he was on the roster. Smythe, who signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal last offseason, is slated to hit free agency, and we'll see if Chicago elects to bring him back for another year on a cheap deal.
Grade: C
Position grade: B+
There were high expectations about the tight-end duo of Cole Kmet and rookie Colston Loveland heading into the 2025 season with new head coach Ben Johnson utilizing 12 and 13 personnel, and Durham Smythe even brought something to the table with his blocking ability which allowed Kmet and Loveland to shine. While it took some time, Loveland exploded on the scene as one of Caleb Williams' top pass catchers and he's a budding superstar in this offense. With Loveland's emergence in the passing game, Kmet took a backseat in the passing game and became more of a blocking tight end. Kmet's dip in production, with just 30 receptions, was certainly a concern, but we'll see if Chicago sees him as a key part of the offense moving forward. All three tight ends also contributed in run blocking for the league's third-best rushing attack. But the tight ends group grades out with a B+ mostly for Loveland's breakout rookie season.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears TE review: Grading Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet in 2025
Continue reading...
