Bears select Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman with No. 25 pick in NFL draft

CHICAGO - The Chicago Bears drafted Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman with the 25th pick in the NFL draft Thursday night in Pittsburgh.

The selection of Thieneman immediately bolsters a secondary that was depleted during free agency.

All four Bears safeties were up for new contracts this offseason, and last year's starters - free safety Kevin Byard III and strong safety Jaquan Brisker - found new homes in free agency.

Thieneman also gives the Bears what they covet most of all: speed. He ran a 4.35 40-yard dash during the scouting combine in February in Indianapolis, fourth-fastest among safeties who participated.

He also had the most bench-press reps (18) among the four safeties who participated in that drill and more than any other defensive back

After spending two seasons at Purdue, Thieneman finished his junior season at Oregon in 2025 with 96 tackles, 3 1/2 tackles for a loss, two interceptions and five passes defended.

Thieneman is the fifth first-round pick selected during general manager Ryan Poles' tenure.

Poles didn't have a first-rounder for his first draft in 2022, as his predecessor Ryan Pace had traded the pick to move up in the 2021 draft and select quarterback Justin Fields. Since then Poles and his staff drafted right tackle Darnell Wright (No. 10 in 2023), quarterback Caleb Williams (No. 1 in 2024), wide receiver Rome Odunze (No. 9 in 2024) and tight end Colston Loveland (No. 10 in 2025) in the first round.

Entering this draft, 34 players overall had been drafted during Poles' administration.

The Bears last spent a first-round pick on a defensive player in 2018, when they selected Georgia inside linebacker Roquan Smith at No. 8.

Barring trades, the Bears have more six picks this weekend. Rounds 2 and 3 are Friday night and Rounds 4-7 are Saturday.

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published April 23, 2026 at 8:07 PM.