17. Chicago Bears: Jake Slaughter, OL, Florida
Just like we discussed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, sometimes the clearest area of need for future draft classes for a particular team is the area in which they are currently looking at the most impactful short-term fixes. The Bears have guys on the interior offensive line who can not only stabilize a weak offensive line, but perhaps raise the floor definitively this coming season.
But how many of them are going to be long-term fixes?
The idea of taking a pure center like Jake Slaughter might not be the ultimate direction for the Bears, but if you feel like one of Slaughter or Drew Dalman can play the guard position at a high level, that might be the direction this team takes. Jonah Jackson was a nice risk-reward option for the Bears this offseason, but there’s a reason he’s on his third team in a short amount of time.
The Joe Thuney and Drew Dalman pickups were huge for the Bears, but they might only be the first steps in making this interior offensive line a truly feared unit for years to come.
18. Minnesota Vikings: Avieon Terrell, CB, Clemson
There are two question marks right now for the Minnesota Vikings in 2025 that could ultimately have this team taking a bigger step back than anyone is willing to acknowledge right now.
The first one is the play of JJ McCarthy, who is obviously very talented but also obviously coming off of a major injury and playing in the NFL for the first time. McCarthy’s impressive throws in the preseason last year carry a ton of weight for Vikings fans, and the team is justifiably very confident in Kevin O’Connell’s ability to get the most out of the former Michigan captain.
The other area of this Vikings team that is a major question mark is the cornerback position, and maybe just the defensive backfield as a whole. The Vikings need guys to step up in the secondary if they are going to compete in the NFC North again this season, and that should be a major area of focus in the 2026 NFL Draft. Here, they land AJ Terrell’s little brother and a ballhawk for the cornerback position.