The Chicago Bears are an American football franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference North Division.[1] The franchise was founded in Decatur, Illinois, on September 20, 1919,[2] became professional on September 17, 1920, and moved to Chicago in 1921.[3] [4] [5] It is one of only two remaining franchises from the NFL's founding in 1920, along with the Arizona Cardinals, which was originally also in Chicago.[6] [7] The team played home games at Wrigley Field on Chicago's North Side through the 1970 season; they now play at Soldier Field on the South Side adjacent to Lake Michigan.[8] [9] [10]
The NFL draft, officially known as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting",[11] [12] [13] is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment.[14] The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings; the teams with the worst win–loss records receive the earliest picks. Teams that qualified for the NFL playoffs select after non-qualifiers, and their order depends on how far they advanced, using their regular season record as a tie-breaker. The final two selections in the first round are reserved for the Super Bowl runner-up and champion. Draft picks are tradable and players or other picks can be acquired with them.[15]
In 1936, the league introduced the NFL draft after team owners voted on it in 1935.[16] [17] The intention of the draft is to make the NFL more competitive, as some teams had an advantage in signing players. From through the NFL designated the first overall selection as a "bonus" or "lottery pick". The pick was awarded by a random draw and the winner who received the "bonus pick" forfeited its selection in the final round of the draft and became ineligible for future draws. The system was abolished prior to the 1959 NFL draft, as all twelve teams in the league at the time had received a bonus choice.[18] [19]
Since the first draft, the Bears have selected 97 players in the first round. The team's first-round pick in the inaugural NFL draft was Joe Stydahar, a tackle from West Virginia University; he was the 6th overall selection.[20] The Bears have held the first overall pick three times and selected Tom Harmon in 1941, Bob Fenimore in 1947, and Caleb Williams in 2024. In the most recent draft, held in 2024, the Bears selected USC quarterback Caleb Williams and Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze.[21]
The Bears did not draft a player in the first round on nine occasions, most recently in 2022. Eleven of the team's first-round picks—Dick Butkus, Jim Covert, Mike Ditka, Dan Hampton, Chuck Howley, Sid Luckman, Walter Payton, Gale Sayers, Joe Stydahar, Clyde Turner, and Brian Urlacher—have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Three of the team's first-round picks—Dave Behrman, Steve DeLong, and George Rice—chose to sign with the NFL's pre-merger direct competitor, the American Football League (AFL), instead.[22] [23] [24] [25]
| Symbol | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame | ||
| Selected number one overall |
| Position abbreviations | ||
|---|---|---|
| C | Center | |
| CB | Cornerback | |
| DB | Defensive back | |
| DE | Defensive end | |
| DT | Defensive tackle | |
| E | End | |
| FB | Fullback | |
| G | Guard | |
| HB | Halfback | |
| LB | Linebacker | |
| QB | Quarterback | |
| RB | Running back | |
| S | Safety | |
| T | Tackle | |
| TE | Tight end | |
| WR | Wide receiver | |
| Pick | scope=col | Player | scope=col | Position | scope=col | College | scope=col class= "unsortable" | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| scope=row | 1936 | 6 | T | West Virginia | ||||
| scope=row | 1937 | 6 | E | Nebraska | ||||
| scope=row | 1938 | 10 | HB | Oregon State | ||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="2" | 1939 | 2 | QB | Columbia | Pick received from Pittsburgh Pirates | |||
| 6 | FB | Holy Cross | ||||||
| scope=row | 1940 | 7 | C | Hardin-Simmons | ||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="3" | 1941 | 1 | HB | Michigan | Pick received from Philadelphia Eagles. Did not sign with team. | |||
| 3 | FB | Stanford | Pick received from Pittsburgh Steelers | |||||
| 9 | HB | Ohio State | ||||||
| scope=row | 1942 | 10 | QB | Stanford | ||||
| scope=row | 1943 | 9 | HB | Missouri | ||||
| scope=row | 1944 | 9 | HB | Kansas | ||||
| scope=row | 1945 | 11 | HB | Michigan | Chose to play Major League Baseball instead[26] | |||
| scope=row | 1946 | 4 | QB | Notre Dame | ||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="2" | 1947 | 1 | HB | Oklahoma A&M | Lottery bonus pick[27] [28] | |||
| 11 | HB | Wisconsin | ||||||
| scope=row | 1948 | 10 | DE | Texas | ||||
| scope=row | 1949 | 11 | C | Texas | ||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="2" | 1950 | 3 | HB | Florida | Pick received from New York Bulldogs | |||
| 10 | HB | Ohio State | ||||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="3" | 1951 | 2 | QB | Notre Dame | Pick received from Baltimore Colts | |||
| 10 | HB | Bradley | Pick received from New York Yanks | |||||
| 12 | WR | Virginia | ||||||
| scope=row | 1952 | 8 | HB | Miami | ||||
| scope=row | 1953 | 6 | HB | Compton JC | ||||
| scope=row | 1954 | 6 | HB | Illinois | ||||
| scope=row | 1955 | 11 | HB | Marquette | ||||
| scope=row | 1956 | 10 | E | Texas | Did not play for the team | |||
| scope=row | 1957 | 13 | DT | LSU | ||||
| scope=row | 1958 | 7 | LB | West Virginia | ||||
| scope=row | 1959 | 7 | HB | Ohio State | ||||
| scope=row | 1960 | 7 | G | Syracuse | ||||
| scope=row | 1961 | 5 | TE | Pittsburgh | ||||
| scope=row | 1962 | 7 | RB | Baylor | ||||
| scope=row | 1963 | 11 | C | Michigan State | Original pick traded to Los Angeles Rams. Pick received from Pittsburgh Steelers. Signed for the AFL's Buffalo Bills instead. | |||
| scope=row | 1964 | 14 | DT | Tennessee | ||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="3" | 1965 | 3 | LB | Illinois | Pick received from Pittsburgh Steelers | |||
| 4 | HB | Kansas | ||||||
| 6 | DE | Tennessee | Pick received from Washington Redskins. Signed for the AFL's San Diego Chargers instead. | |||||
| scope=row | 1966 | 12 | DT | LSU | Signed for the AFL's Houston Oilers instead | |||
| scope=row | 1967 | 10 | DE | Arkansas | ||||
| scope=row | 1968 | 16 | FB | USC | ||||
| scope=row | 1969 | 14 | T | Ohio State | Moved down draft order due to failure to pick within allotted time | |||
| scope=row | 1970 | Pick traded to Green Bay Packers | ||||||
| scope=row | 1971 | 11 | RB | Missouri | ||||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="2" | 1972 | 3 | T | Southern Illinois | Pick received from New York Giants | |||
| 12 | S | Iowa | ||||||
| scope=row | 1973 | 8 | DT | Eastern Kentucky | Additional pick received from Kansas City Chiefs, used to move down draft order in with trade with Detroit Lions, and traded to New England Patriots. | |||
| scope=rowgroup rowspan="2" | 1974 | 4 | LB | Tennessee State | ||||
| 20 | DE | Michigan | Pick received from Washington Redskins | |||||
| scope=row | 1975 | 4 | HB | Jackson State | ||||
| scope=row | 1976 | 8 | T | Wisconsin | Moved up draft order in trade with Detroit Lions |