Top 25 most important Bears in 2023: No. 8 Cole Kmet

Shaw Local is counting down the top 25 most important Bears for the 2023 season.

What makes one player more important than another? That’s subjective, of course. But for our purposes it comes down to this: Are the Bears worse off if this player can’t play? Does this player have untapped potential or past greatness to live up to? Is his story going to be one fans follow closely this season?

The best player on the team isn’t always the most important, but he certainly can be. We will announce one player every day between now and the start of training camp.

No. 8 Cole Kmet

Position: Tight end

NFL experience: Fourth season

Last year’s ranking: No. 6

Looking back: Much like the Bears’ offense as a whole, tight end Cole Kmet had a slow start to the 2022 season. The Bears were historically bad in the passing game through the first month of the season, and it reflected in the numbers of almost all the pass catchers. But Kmet’s 2022 season turned a corner after a 10-day layoff following a Thursday night loss to Washington. The Bears dubbed it the “mini bye” and used the time to rework the offense, adding in more designed runs for quarterback Justin Fields and finding creative ways to play to his strengths.

In Weeks 8 through 10, Kmet totaled five touchdowns in three games. He finished the year with 50 receptions for 544 yards and seven touchdowns. He appeared in all 17 games and proved to be one of the most reliable players on the offense. He was on the field for 93% of offensive snaps in 2022. His seven touchdowns were a welcomed sight after he went all of 2021 without finding the end zone.

The Bears originally drafted Kmet with a second-round pick (43rd overall) in 2020. He will enter the fourth and final year of his rookie contract in 2023.

Looking forward: A big topic of discussion during training camp likely will be Kmet’s contract status. Has he done enough to warrant a contract extension ahead of the 2023 season? Or should the Bears wait and see how he performs this year? That’s what general manager Ryan Poles has to decide. By all accounts, Kmet is a good teammate who truly cares only about winning football games. For a young tight end, his early-career production shows promise. Few rookie tight ends hit the ground running, and Kmet showed noticeable growth from Year 1 to Year 3.

[ What might a Cole Kmet extension look like for the Chicago Bears? ]

Kmet is going to continue to be a centerpiece of the offense. The Bears signed tight end Robert Tonyan, who previously caught a lot of passes with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, but Kmet still is going to be tight end No. 1 in this offense. The hope is that, with a better offense, Kmet can have his best season yet as a pro. He should be looking to eclipse his career-high 612 yards from 2021 and his seven touchdowns from last season. If the passing game improves, Kmet’s production will improve, too.

In case you missed it: Previous installments of the top 25

• No. 25: Robert Tonyan
• No. 24: Roschon Johnson
• No. 23: Cody Whitehair
• No. 22: Velus Jones Jr.
• No. 21: Jack Sanborn
• No. 20: Teven Jenkins
• No. 19: DeMarcus Walker
• No. 18: Gervon Dexter
• No. 17: Dominique Robinson
• No. 16: Kyler Gordon
• No. 15: D’Onta Foreman
• No. 14: Tyrique Stevenson
• No. 13: Jaquan Brisker
• No. 12: T.J. Edwards
• No. 11: Khalil Herbert
• No. 10: Darnell Wright
• No. 9: Braxton Jones