The Chicago Bears knew they wanted to find help at running back going into the 2025 draft. They probably didn’t expect things to unfold as they did. Multiple names came off the board before GM Ryan Poles had a chance to get them. Rather than reaching at the position, he opted each time to go with he best player available. Things never seemed to drift their way, which is an unfortunate reality with the draft sometimes. Still, they had to get somebody. To their surprise, Kyle Monangai out of Rutgers was still available in the 7th. That pick became one of the easiest in the draft.
At first glance, Monangai was nothing special. He didn’t have great size or power. His speed was average at best. What stood out with him was an important mixture of toughness, footwork, and vision. He knew where to find the holes and had the contact balance to get through them. Topping 1200 rushing yards in the Big Ten for two straight seasons is no small feat. However, his runs likely weren’t what sold the Bears on him. His running backs coach told a story to Sean Hammond of the Chicago Tribune.
There is no question the Bears heard it too, and didn’t need much convincing afterwards.
Late in the year against Michigan State, the Spartans had shown an exotic blitz just once all season. When they showed a similar look against Rutgers, it was Monangai — not the quarterback or center — who recognized it and called it out to teammates.
“When he saw the look, he observed for a second and he went up and changed the protection,” Shaw said. “(He) told the quarterback, ‘Hey, no we’re going to get into this protection.’ Told the O-line, ‘Hey, we’re going to slide to this guy,’ and he picked up exactly the guy who was going to be free.”
If not for Monangai, Shaw thinks Michigan State’s pressure likely would have blown up the play.
“You don’t see running backs change protections like that,” Shaw said.
Too often in the modern NFL, you find guys who are only focused on doing things that garner the most attention and notoriety. Wide receivers only want to catch passes. Defensive ends only want to rush the quarterback. Cornerbacks just want to play man coverage. It takes more than that to be a winning team in this league. Players must be willing to do other things. Blocking is a big one for running backs. People always talk about Walter Payton as a runner. Those who knew him insist to this day that he was one of the best blocking backs of all time.
It seems Kyle Monangai carries the same mentality. Not only is he willing to block, but he goes out of his way to make sure everybody does it the right way. Few running backs are that assertive. He will be a quarterback’s best friend before too long.
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