2025 NFL Mock Draft: Chicago Bears boost pass rush

Mykel Williams, EDGE, Georgia

The stage is set.

“The Chicago Bears are on the clock…” Good old Rodger Goodell says, then steps away from the podium quickly and vanishes backstage to weep softly after the chorus of boos he has received throughout the night and to nurse his bruised and broken body after being bear-hugged by yet another prospect.

The camera cuts to various draft analysts who all rant and rave about who is left on the board and who the Bears should select at pick #10, all obviously right in their assessments and ready to prove their point to all watching. The eye in the sky then turns its attention to a large throng of Bears fans, some dressed up to look like Bears legend Iron Mike Ditka, complete with rich, amazing mustaches and thick cigars. Some wear large decorated bear heads and furry sleeves ending in bear paws, taking their right to “bear arms” very seriously. They seem uneasy as their team is on the clock. A likely and hoped-for prospect in Ashton Jeanty is gone, calling Las Vegas his new home, much to the dismay of some of the fans in attendance. A number of other targets commonly linked to the Bears are also off the board, making this a tense moment, full of hope but also dread and worry. The fans want them to make a good pick. Will the Bears get it right?

Roger Goodell appears from the darkness and approaches the podium, showered by a rain of boos that don’t seem to let up even as he stands ready to make the pick. He waits, unbending; these truly never bother him; he even encourages the dissenters to boo him more, even if it really hurts his feelings deep down. Slowly the boos trail off, and Goodell takes advantage of the moment of relative calm to read the card in his hand. Everyone watches and waits with bated breaths.

“With the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears select… Mykel Williams, DE, Georgia!”

We see the large crowd of NFL fans and draft aficionados; many in the crowd begin to look lost and confused at why the team would ever make this pick, staring around appearing puzzled and holding their arms out. Many cheer in jubilation, clearly fans of the pick, believing it was a good selection. The camera cuts to the Bears’ war room, the staff members clapping and high fiving one another. What we see that is easily noticeable and quite odd, standing out like a sore thumb, is that Bears GM Ryan Poles is suspiciously absent from the war room. Where could the Bears’ general manager be on this big night? Why is he not there overseeing his teams draft? In his spot sits an unfamiliar face, a man wearing a pristine white lab coat over an extremely snazzy and warm-looking sweater, the kind that those in academia tend to enjoy wearing. A name tag slapped to his coat slightly crooked reads, “Dr.Professor Bubbles, temporary Bears GM,” in messy handwriting, and with a loud, maniacal cackle, he revels in the chaos and excitement of the night, both the good and the bad.

Who is Mykel Williams?

Mykel DeAnthony Williams is a defensive end for the Georgia Bulldogs; he is 20 years old, born June 29th, 2004, in Columbus, Georgia. He is majoring in sports management. He stands at 6’5” and weighs in around 267 lbs. Other important measurables come in as such: his arm length is 34 3/8’’, his hand size comes in at 10 1/4’’, and his wingspan is 82⅞”. Here is his spider graph, pictured for reference.

Unfortunately but understandably, Mykel decided against taking part in drills at the combine due to a still healing injury, so we must look at his pro day numbers instead. He ran an unofficial 40-yard dash time of 4.73 at 267.

He began his playing time for the Bulldogs in 2022 and decided to enter the 2025 NFL Draft after three seasons. Across these 3 seasons, he compiled 14 sacks, 41 solo tackles, 26 assisted tackles, and 21.5 tackles for loss, as well as 3 passes batted, 3 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery. He played in 15 games in his debut season, starting in 2 of them in 2022. In 2023 he played in 13 games, making 10 starts. In his final season in 2024, he played in 11 games and made 5 starts. In 2024, he suffered a Grade 2 left ankle sprain playing against Clemson in the very first game of the Bulldogs season and missed the next two games, against Kentucky and Tennessee Tech, due to the injury. Mykel himself has stated that he played at “less than 60%” throughout the season and also stated he was “injured the whole year, never healthy,” also calling it “frustrating” and “nagging” and decided to skip drills at the combine due to his recovery. Despite this injury to his ankle, he fought through it and played 10 more games, showing grit and resilience.

What are his strengths and weaknesses?

Mykel Williams will be only 20 years old on draft night, is tall with an already impressive frame that he can grow into a little more with NFL strength and conditioning, shows very good play strength, and has great athleticism for his position, traits that help him win his attempts. As a push rusher, he shows many traits that make him an appealing prospect. He attacks off the snap with good power and speed thanks to his athleticism, using his long arms and strength to stave off and control blockers. He is strong enough to use the bull-rush effectively while also showcasing strong hands. He’s a fluid mover, quick on his feet, and can attack the edge with enough bend to threaten the tackle. Mykel is able to turn speed into power well, and his length helps this greatly, attacking with speed and then using his wingspan and heavy hands to keep blockers away from him. He shows a solid ability to burst and close when rushing. With his long arms, he is able to get in throwing lanes and make life harder on QBs when he isn’t able to win his pass rush in time, as well as use those long limbs to reach for and strip sack the ball even if he didn’t have a clean rush.

As a run defender, Mykel shines with his traits again. He’s able to use his burst and strength to set a hard edge, keeping blockers where he wants them with his length and showing the ability to hold the point of attack. He hustles hard, has a great motor, plays through the entire play, and is a generally consistent tackler, showing the kind of attitude and desire coaches love in a defensive lineman. He is one of the better run defenders at EDGE in the 2025 class and uses his great traits to get into the backfield often as a defender, shooting gaps or reducing inside, and he can move and cover ground swiftly while there, chasing down runners in the backfield. This is evidenced by his TFLs over his career, and in fact, over 31% of his tackles resulted in a TFL.

To finish up, another one of Mykel’s big strengths is that he is extremely versatile, able to line up in a variety of alignments and positions and win in those spots, using all of his tantalizing traits and abilities. At Georgia, he moved along the defensive line and performed well, showing he can functionally be moved around, bringing great versatility and making a great player for getting creative with. Defensive coordinators usually value this trait highly, and Mykel has proven he is both skilled and well-versed in it.

As for weaknesses, no prospect is perfect, and Mykel has his fair share of knocks. When looking at his college career, the first and obvious blemish is his lack of high-end production. He never accumulated more than 5 sacks in a season despite all his potential, and many scouts and observers are quick to point this out. His pad level is usually poor, and that allows blockers to knock him back a lot easier than they should when his pads rise. Due to the pad level rising, he can rush far too tall and rigid at times and needs to use his bend and athletic abilities to help keep himself low and attack more effectively overall.

While he has good strength, he needs to add more to really be able to use his bull-rush against NFL linemen and win with it more consistently. Getting stronger will also help him win more run defense reps and be even more of a force on the defense. Another major flaw is his lack of a plan when pass rushing, and he needs to work hard on being able to formulate his approach and be ready to respond when he gets stymied or his first move doesn’t work out. I cannot speak to this personally, but I have seen a lot out there that the Georgia defense limited what he can showcase and that there should be more he can show off and do given more opportunities to do so.

Overall, he really needs to work on some technical aspects of his game to match his athletic ability and upside. He will not be able to use those traits to win as much as he did in college, and professional offensive lines will take advantage of any weaknesses he has in his game, so he absolutely has to clean some of it up and use better technique consistently. He never really performed like he should have with the myriad of traits he possesses and definitely under delivered while at Georgia compared to what many expected him to do. He was still a valuable contributor and an important part of Georgia’s defense despite that.

My take and why I made this pick.

Alright, I did my best to keep the majority of the above factual, unbiased and backed up by numbers. Here’s where I get to explain why I made this pick, what I like about Mykel Williams and how I see him in the NFL, and why I like him for the Bears moving forward. First off, his middle name is DeAnthony. He’s literally got DE in his name; he’s made for this. Case closed.

All jokes aside, starting with an obvious reality, many of the targets I hoped would fall to #10 didn’t make it. This left me to evaluate who was left on the board and who made sense in my mind. What really appealed to me about drafting for Chicago was the state their roster is in currently, as they really worked on addressing their needs and weaknesses. While they still need upgrades, there isn’t a massive, glaring need I could have addressed at 10 in my eyes. Pick #10 was far too high in my mind for Omarion Hampton, although I love his talent. The Bears can pickup a solid RB in another round, because they do need to find someone better than D’Andre Swift. The best remaining tackles have shorter arms but good tape, but O-Line was not as big of a need as it was before Chicago worked on revamping their line, and they can always snag one in a later round to compete and be a valuable backup. The best WRs were still on the board, but I think the Bears have a good enough group that they can grab a wideout later instead of making another high pick for one after taking Rome Odunze last year at pick #9.

While not everything is perfect in the Windy City, they made some significant improvements to their team, hired a new and exciting coach in Ben Johnson, and I looked at pick #10 and knew I could go a variety of different ways depending on who fell. I considered a few options here but ended up feeling pretty confident in drafting Mykel Williams. It’s a little bit of a luxury kind of pick, a risky one too, but they can give him a role and let him grow, as he’s only 20 years old.

We’ve seen Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen highly value EDGE players who can set a good edge and really disrupt the opposing team’s running game first and foremost while still being able to get some pass rush. He also values players who are versatile and can be moved around. Allen has said that as Bears DC, “We want to be an attacking, aggressive style of defense,” and he wants to be able to “take the fight to the offense.” Mykel Williams is exactly who he wants. He’s going to be a good run defender day one, as he’s one of the best in this class, he can rush well enough for where he’s at, and he’s only going to improve at both aspects. He is able to attack, and hold ground, all while being able to be moved and utilized in various spots.

He fits in well right from the start. He’s a solid player already; he can defend the run pretty darn well; he’s got great traits; he played hurt and still managed to take care of business and help his team out as much as he could while hurt. He’s a player that just oozes a ton of potential, but you can also look at his tape and see him play well and consistently enough; it’s not as if he has a ton of traits but never put any of it together at all. He’s someone you can get out on the field and know he’s going to be able to help out in some way. Granted, if being a rotational player and a depth piece were all he amounted to, he’d never be worth the tenth overall pick, but I think it’s wise to bet on all of his traits and potential to be so much more than that. He played last year hurt, and that really limited what he could do and display for teams and scouts. There is a lot that he will improve upon when fully healthy and with good NFL coaching.

Da Bears have Montez Sweat locking down one EDGE spot and went out and got Dayo Odeyingbo to start on the other side. Behind those two, they have Austin Booker and Daniel Hardy, as well as Dominique Robinson and Jamree Kromah, in their EDGE room, and while these players can still develop and have an impact on the team, a guy like Mykel Williams had the potential to pass all of them, but he brings a high-risk, high-reward gamble for the Bears. If he develops and continues to hone his craft while maximizing his physical tools, he should be an absolute force at EDGE, contributing as a fantastic run defender and someone who can attack upfield and be a terror for offensive lines and quarterbacks. If the bet fails, Mykel will likely never unlock his amazing potential to its fullest and would have to hope to carve a role out as a decent run stopper with limited pass rush abilities at best.

Defenses thrive when they have the ability to rotate their linemen and keep them fresh so they can go out and attack with reckless abandon. As a rookie and depending on how camps and preseason go, Mykel should be able to be rotated in for Odeyingbo or Sweat when needed during year one, providing good run defense and some pass rush capability. There will also be opportunities to have him out there in pass rushing situations because of the versatility he brings and the invaluable experience he would gain. In this capacity, he can work on his game, absorb everything he can and really hone in on those weaknesses and how to correct them without the added pressure of starting right away, all while getting stronger and adjusting to being a professional.

I really feel that with a little time and some patience, he can easily add weight, get a good deal stronger, and get some expert coaching for his flaws. It all comes down to the usual theme with a lot of prospects like him. How hard is he really willing to work for it? How badly does he truly want it? Is he willing to make the sacrifices, and grind to improve day in and day out? No one can answer those questions but Mykel himself, but I’d bet on him giving it his all, fighting, learning, and ascending as a player. In Chicago, he can get that chance, providing a valuable rotational player with immense upside and even a starter if it was needed early on. If he can put it all together and really dominate and thrive, they will have a franchise cornerstone at EDGE, and NFC North quarterbacks and OCs will lose a lot of sleep.

I hope my analysis and opinion can help show how Mykel Williams is an excellent prospect and how he can fit with the Bears well and help them out. I look forward to reading everyone’s write-ups and who they selected, as well as watching the actual draft and seeing any similarities to ours! As I finish this analysis, I want to say, stay safe out there, people, take care of each other, and show compassion as well as the common courtesy and respect that seems to be lacking at times. I want to say have a great retirement, BG; we’ll always love and appreciate you, your strip sack of Tom Brady made me fall to my knees and shed some tears. Finally, I want to give a big shout-out to our beloved birds,THE SUPER BOWL LIX CHAMPION PHILADELPHIA EAGLES! And as always, Fly Eagles Fly! P.S. Dallas sucks!

Some more information on Mykel Williams

Williams attended Hardaway High School in Columbus, Georgia. After his senior season, he was named the Maxwell Football National High School Defensive Player of the Year.

He was a five-star prospect, and he was the no. 2 defensive lineman in the 2022 class and the no. 4 player overall. Mykel originally committed to USC before deciding to flip over to Georgia.

Mykel has said that his favorite player to watch is Myles Garrett. Can’t go wrong there!

He was a high school wrestler, which he credits for helping him develop a strong mentality and discipline. It also helped him with improving his pass rush in one-on-one situations. “It’s you versus him. You’re going to give your best, and he’s going to give his best.” Gotta love that attitude!

In high school, he trained with current Baltimore Ravens pass-rush coach Chuck Smith. Pretty cool fact!

Poll

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2025 BGN Mock Draft Order

1) Titans (JoeDirtsBarber): Travis Hunter, WR/CB, Colorado

2) Browns (kjb304): Abdul Carter, EDGE, Penn State

3) Giants (The Player Formerly Known as Mousecop): Cam Ward, QB, Miami

4) Patriots (ReginaldHtower): Will Campbell, OT, LSU

5) Jaguars (eaglenomics): Mason Graham, DT, Michigan

6) Raiders (dkays): Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State

7) Jets (Stick19154): Tyler Warren, TE, Penn State

8) Panthers (89Tremaine): Will Johnson, CB, Michigan

9) Saints (FierceDisc65): Jalon Walker, EDGE, Georgia

10) Bears (DrprofBubbles): Mykel Williams, EDGE, Georgia

11) 49ers (granthill7)

12) Cowboys (Be subpar for Ja’Marr)

13) Dolphins (thehead92)

14) Colts (green1us)

15) Falcons (All_Hail_Howie)

16) Cardinals (Good Bad Ideas)

17) Bengals (ablesser88)

18) Seahawks (herbalonius)

19) Buccaneers (Hoosinole)

20) Broncos (Silverlark60)

21) Steelers (Dr.MidnightGreen)

22) Chargers (LancGuy)

23) Packers (Leo Bedio)

24) Vikings (krikkebelgium)

25) Texans (Aint1stULast)

26) Rams (Booth12)

27) Ravens (pheebthegoose)

28) Lions (Neil Dutton)

29) Commanders (Mailata_in_a_Miata)

30) Bills (PhilaWolverine)

31) Chiefs (niels.rosenquist)

32) Eagles (Philly21)

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Now it’s time for you to vote for who YOU think should be selected in the 2025 BGN Community Consensus Mock Draft.

Poll

Who should the Bears pick at No. 10 overall?

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  EDGE Mykel Williams

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  OT Kelvin Banks Jr.

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  EDGE Shemar Stewart

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  OT Josh Simmons

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  RB Omarion Hampton

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  OG Tyler Booker

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  S Malaki Starks

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  TE Tyler Warren

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1) Titans: QB Cam Ward

2) Browns: EDGE Abdul Carter

3) Giants: WR/CB Travis Hunter

4) Patriots: OT Will Campbell

5) Jaguars: DT Mason Graham

6) Raiders: RB Ashton Jeanty

7) Jets: OT Armand Membou

8) Panthers: CB Will Johnson

9) Saints: EDGE Jalon Walker

10) Bears: