The Chicago Bears found their center of the future in the 2026 NFL Draft with the selection of Iowa's Logan Jones with the 57th overall pick. Following the surprise retirement of Drew Dalman, head coach Ben Johnson has chosen his long-term pairing with quarterback Caleb Williams.
In four years at Iowa, Jones started 51 games at center and was an Unanimous All-American this past season, and he was the Rimington Trophy winner as the nation's top center. Jones fits what the Bears are looking for at center, and he could challenge for the starting job as a rookie.
Chicago acquired Garrett Bradbury via trade with the New England Patriots, sending a 2027 fifth-round pick in exchange, and the expectation was that he would start in 2026. But Bradbury has just one year left on his current deal, and the Bears were expected to make a move for a long-term center, which came with the Jones selection.
2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Dillon Thieneman in first round (No. 25)2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Logan Jones2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Sam Roush2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Zavion Thomas2026 NFL Draft: Bears select CB Malik Muhammad2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Keyshaun Elliott2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Jordan van den Berg1 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Dillon Thieneman in first round (No. 25)1 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Dillon Thieneman in first round (No. 25)2 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Logan Jones3 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Sam Roush4 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Zavion Thomas5 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select CB Malik Muhammad6 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Keyshaun Elliott7 / 7Chicago Bears' 2026 rookie draft class2026 NFL Draft: Bears select Jordan van den BergHere's what some expert draft analysts had to say about Jones during the pre-draft process and what Bears fans can expect to see:
"A four-year starter at Iowa, Jones was a fixture at center (right-handed snapper) in offensive coordinator Tim Lester’s zone-blocking scheme. After enrolling as a 260-pound defensive tackle, he made the transition to center and admirably filled Tyler Linderbaum’s shoes. He gave up only one sack over his junior and senior seasons and had a prolific 2025 season, taking home the Rimington Trophy as the nation’s top center. He was a significant factor in the Hawkeyes winning the 2025 Joe Moore Award as college football’s best offensive line.
Jones is lightning quick in his snap-to-step process and has an instinctive feel for leverage and blocking angles. With his vise-grip hands, he can latch, drive his feet and torque defenders to create running room. Though he has terrific range and recovery quickness, his lack of length stands out on reach blocks and when attempting to combat powerful defensive tackles in a phone booth. His competitive temperament and toughness are unquestioned — he taught himself to snap with his left hand while managing a right-hand injury in 2024."
"Undersized but highly experienced with NFL-ready technique. Jones has a dense frame and short limbs. He has impressive initial quickness and stays firm inside the framework with his hands while his feet rarely stop pressing forward. Long nose tackles with quick hands are his kryptonite at the point of attack. Iowa’s scheme limited his true pass-set count, so proving he can anchor and play with gap range will be essential. He’s operational in gap schemes but better in zone, where his athleticism mitigates his lack of length. Jones’ age, traits and center-only value could limit his suitor count, but he has the polish to help early with the right fit."
"Jones is a high-IQ, feisty center with strong athleticism for zone schemes. He moves well laterally and shows good hand usage, but his outlier-short arm length creates challenges sustaining blocks and handling longer defenders."
"Jones is a four-year starter with the blend of intelligence, tenacity, quickness, and athleticism to overcome his shorter arms and less-than-adequate size. He fires off the ball, exhibits clean footwork, latches onto opposing defenders, and moves his feet well. He tested well at the combine, running the fastest 40-yard dash among all offensive linemen, the second-fastest short shuttle time, and posted an outstanding broad jump for an interior lineman, evidence of his lower-body explosiveness.
He fits best in a zone-heavy scheme, but he’s competitive as a drive blocker. He plays with good pad level and can drive defensive tackles into linebackers as a combination blocker. He’s quick getting set and works his hands inside as a pass blocker. He blocks to the whistle and is always looking for someone to hit. However, there is little margin for error in his game given his size. He gets stood up and can be overpowered when he doesn’t win with his hands.
He can mirror and recover when he gets caught out of position and rewraps his hands when he starts to give ground to power rushers. He played in a run-heavy offense that runs a lot of play action, and he made a lot of calls at the line for the Iowa offense. He moved from defensive line to center in 2022 and started 50 games there for the Hawkeyes, earning All-America honors and winning the Rimington Trophy in 2025 as the nation’s best center."
Jones' pass protection is the reason he won the Rimington Trophy. Watch his 2025 tape and what stands out is how clean his reps are in the passing game. He sits, he mirrors, his hands land inside, and he almost never gives up the inside track to a rusher. Over his final two seasons, you can count on one hand the pressures he allowed. The combine confirmed what the film already said: fastest 40 among offensive linemen, top-two finishes in the 3-cone and shuttle, and a 32-inch vertical that speaks to the kind of explosive base that keeps him rooted against inside moves.
The run blocking is where the tape gets uneven. Jones is quick enough to reach his landmarks in a zone scheme and he finishes with effort, but he does not move people. His lack of size and length shows up when he is asked to hold the point on double teams or seal a shade nose in gap-heavy looks. He is a good run blocker in a scheme that caters to his movement, but he is not going to win many reps on power alone. That is a meaningful distinction at the next level.
The right fit is a zone-oriented offense that values pass protection at center and can live with a run game built around angles rather than displacement. Jones can be the brains of the line from day one. He turns 25 before his rookie year ends and he is a center-only prospect, so the window is narrower than most. But for a team that needs someone who can keep the pocket clean and make all the calls, there is a real floor here.
— Very good initial quickness and burst to close space and establish first meaningful contact on defenders in the zone run game and on back blocks.
— Can hook shades, complete overtakes on combination blocks and transition into the drive-phase late in the rep to steer and widen defenders out of lanes.
— Takes adequate angles on climbs but closes space very quickly to square up, latch and steer slow-trigger backers away from the ball.
— Fluidly shifts his weight and redirects to mirror and slow down counter moves across his face.
— Can work his way around power moves in pass protection using jump sets to eliminate the rusher's runway, gain quick control and die slowly in his anchor.
— Below average mass, length and play strength leave him routinely stalemated and pried open on base blocks.