Colston Loveland
Loveland is a near every-down tight end who is the Bears' primary pass-catching TE, and his production is starting to follow his usage now that Caleb Williams is back.
Role
He played 85% of offensive snaps (327) through Week 5 (Sports Mockery, citing PFF). That was the most of any Bear outside the offensive line. Through five games he had 187 pass snaps and 152 routes, against 104 pass snaps and 68 routes for Cole Kmet. Rookie TE Sam Roush is also on the roster (RotoWire). His 72% snap share and 17% for another TE in RotoWire's table are not labeled by player here, so I don't use them. He was second on the team in Week 6 targets behind Luther Burden III, who had eight (NBC Sports). Burden and Rome Odunze are his main target competition. Loveland also leads NFL tight ends in run-blocking snaps (Bleacher Nation, citing PFF).
The usage is there, and the coaches say he is built into the game plan. ESPN reported that OC Press Taylor and coach Johnson insist he is often the primary read. He caught 6 of 7 targets for 65 yards and his first TD of the season in Week 6 with Williams back from a three-week hamstring absence. He had a second TD chance that a poorly thrown ball cost him. Bleacher Nation thought he could have had double-digit targets in the Week 5 loss to Green Bay, when Tyson Bagent went elsewhere. Loveland has taken six of the seven red-zone targets the Bears have thrown to tight ends.
The production has lagged the snaps all season. Through five games he had 13 catches on 23 targets for 110 yards and no TD. His 59.5 PFF grade ranked 26th of 32 TEs, and his average depth of target was only 5.6 to 6.4 yards. The offense is run-heavy near the goal line: Chicago has passed on just 43% of red-zone plays, and 10 of its 14 offensive TDs through five games were rushing. Defenses are also treating him as a threat. ESPN, citing NextGen Stats, said he faced double coverage on a league-high share of routes, and his separation fell from 3.7 yards on his targets in 2025 to 2.1. His heavy run-blocking load also keeps him from running routes on every snap.
Where analysts split
The question is whether Loveland's role has actually shrunk or whether he has just had bad luck and quarterback instability. ESPN and Bleacher Nation read it as the latter: Williams was out, Bagent and Keenum started, and one big game followed. Sports Mockery and the PFF efficiency numbers raise doubts about the offense and his depth of target. One game with Williams back is a small sample, and nobody has settled it.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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