Colston Loveland was one of two tight ends selected in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft and was the first tight end to be selected. It looked like it was going to be a battle between Loveland and Penn State tight end Tyler Warren over who would be selected first, and in the end, Loveland won out.
Since the NFL Draft has concluded, it is interesting to see what took place during the early rounds when it came to trades between the teams. NFL insider Ian Rapoport joined Pat McAfee on the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN a few days after the draft to talk about trades and what went on behind the scenes.
Before the draft, there were reports of some teams being really active in trying to trade up in the first round, but the real big trade that happened was the Jacksonville Jaguars trading up from the fifth pick to the second overall pick to take Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter.
Rapoport said that the phones were really active in the first round up to a certain pick. It wasn't until after Loveland was selected that the phones really went silent in the first round when it came to picks, indicating that it seemed like teams were trying to trade up to take Loveland.
The NFL insider said that teams like the Denver Broncos and the Houston Texans were two that were really active in trying to trade up; however, when Loveland was selected, they weren't making any more calls.
While this cannot be proven unless the teams fully come out and say that Loveland was who they were going after, it definitely makes sense to assume that if they stopped trying to trade up after he was off the board.
Loveland is set to become a great offensive weapon for Bears QB Caleb Williams
It was clear in this draft that the Chicago Bears were building up the offense for second-year quarterback Caleb Williams. They took Loveland in the first round and then Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden III in the second round. Those are two great offensive weapons for Williams going forward.
. Loveland is only the third tight end the Bears have ever selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, the other two being Greg Olsen and Mike Ditka. The young Michigan tight end has some big shoes to fill in that position; however, with his ability to run routes and catch the ball, the Bears are pretty confident in what he brings to the table.