Bears Name Colston Loveland Rookie of the Year

The first Chicago rookie to lead the team in receiving since 1983 earns the honor after a late-season surge with record playoff production.

Overview

Loveland finished his debut season with 58 receptions for 713 yards and six touchdowns, leading the Bears in receiving as the first rookie to do so since Willie Gault in 1983 and the first rookie tight end since Mike Ditka in 1961.
Drafted 10th overall in 2025, the tight end overcame a missed offseason due to 2024 shoulder surgery and a slow start to become a trusted, versatile weapon.
His breakout came Nov. 2 at Cincinnati with six catches for 118 yards and two scores, including a 58-yard game-winner with 17 seconds left that earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors.
In the wild-card win over Green Bay, he posted eight catches for 137 yards and totaled 193 yards over two playoff games, the most by a rookie tight end in a single postseason since at least 1960.
Chicago also honored Caleb Williams (Offense), Kevin Byard III (Defense) and Cairo Santos (Special Teams), and the club became the first Super Bowl-era team with three rookies reaching 650-plus scrimmage yards in Loveland, Kyle Monangai and Luther Burden III.