Former Notre Dame football player Cole Kmet likely entered the 2025 NFL Draft’s first round feeling pretty confident that he was going to be “the man” for the Chicago Bears again this season.
And then, his team, of which he has essentially been an MVP of since he first arrived in 2020, fired a bit of a shot across the bow. That’s because Kmet watched with the rest of his Bears teammates and the franchise’s fans as Chicago selected Michigan tight end Colston Loveland with the No. 10 pick in the first round.
Former Notre Dame star Cole Kmet faces new competition
That pick is certainly an interesting one for the former Notre Dame star who was likely looking forward to working with an offensive minded coach who does enjoy throwing to the tight end. And even though Ben Johnson does like to use the two-tight ends package as much as anyone in the league, Kmet likely thought he was going to be doing so with another former Fighting irish star in Durham Smythe.
Instead, it’s possible that the Bears have basically told the aging ex-Notre Dame star that he is in fact, getting moved off the No. 1 tight end spot for a younger product. It’s hard to tell how fair that is when everything is all said and done.
On the one hand, Kmet’s numbers have gotten quite a bit worse over the last few years. After hauling in 73 catches in 2023, he had just 47 receptions in 2024. Though the Bears working with yet another rookie, unpolished quarterback might have had something to do with it.
No matter what was behind the Chicago Bears taking a tight end in the first round, it’s clear that the former Notre Dame football star should take it as a shot across the bow heading into the 2025 regular season.