Bears’ top weapon receives head-scratching prediction that will stump fans

The Chicago Bears‘ offense was certainly impressive last season, ranking sixth in the NFL in yards and ninth in scoring. Much of that was due to quarterback Caleb Williams having a smorgasbord of weapons at his disposal, including tight end Colston Loveland.

The Bears selected Loveland with the 10th overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, a rather puzzling move at the time. Not only was it very early for a tight end, but Notre Dame’s Tyler Warren was also on the board.

Nevertheless, Chicago settled on Loveland, and it was rewarded heavily, as the University of Michigan product hauled in 58 receptions for 713 yards an six touchdowns during his rookie campaign.

Loveland became Williams’ favorite target and resulted in Cole Kmet becoming a blatantly obvious trade candidate, and although the Bears have opted to hold on to Kmet thus far, it’s entirely possible the will make a post-June 1 move with the former second-round pick.

So, what is Loveland’s outlook for 2026? Strangely enough, Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay does not seem to have high hopes for him.

Could Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland have a sophomore slump?

In a piece where Kay listed six second-year players that could either become stars or have slumps in Year 2, he placed Loveland in the latter category, noting that head coach Ben Johnson prefers his quarterback to spread the ball around.

“Johnson deploys a system that leans heavily into two- or three-tight end sets, having utilized plenty of 12 and 13 personnel even before his organization onboarded another talented tight end in the form of rookie Day 2 pick Sam Roush,” Kay wrote. “With Cole Kmet still lingering around and Roush poised for some action—along with a projected uptick in looks for both Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III—Loveland looks to be in line for another solid yet unspectacular campaign.”

Well, first of all, Kmet is still around for now. The Bears’ decision to select Roush in the third round of the NFL Draft is a clear indication that Kmet is on the trade block, so it would not be surprising to see Kmet dealt rather soon.

As for Loveland having an “unspectacular campaign” in 2025? I certainly wouldn’t say those numbers were “unspectacular” for a rookie. In fact, they were rather impressive.

“Don’t count on Loveland having a major sophomore slump, but it’s quite possible the second-year tight end fails to even surpass his rookie marks as he plays a familiar role in 2026,” Kay concluded.

Look, it’s entirely possible that Loveland’s numbers see a bit of a dip in 2026, but I don’t think I would place him in the “slump” department for next season.

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