The Bears released Trey Burton recently and they took a tight end they hope will replace him with the 43rd pick of the draft.
The team selected former Notre Dame standout Cole Kmet to kick off their draft. Their first-round pick went to the Raiders in the Khalil Mack trade.
Kmet is the first tight end to be selected this year and was widely regarded as the top prospect at the position. He had 43 catches for 515 yards and six touchdowns during his final year at South Bend and is generally seen as a better receiver than blocker at this point in his development.
The Bears have also signed Jimmy Graham and Demetrius Harris this offseason and still have 2017 second-rounder Adam Shaheen, but using the pick on Kmet shows they aren’t convinced they have the right mix at the position.