The following is the second of nine position previews in advance of training camp.
Veteran D'Andre Swift and second-year pro Kyle Monangai return for a second season together after becoming one of the NFL's top tandems in 2025.
In the first year of the Ben Johnson-led offense, the pair combined to be the only running back duo in the league to each rush for 750+ yards, helping the Bears finish with the third-best rushing attack in the NFL (2,456 yards). By the end of the 2025 season, Johnson was describing Swift and Monangai as "a pretty formidable unit."
Swift totaled career highs in 2025 with 1,087 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns on 223 carries. He also added 299 receiving yards and one TD on 34 receptions.
The seven-year pro routinely displayed his playmaking ability, highlighted by a season-high 125-yard performance in a win over the Eagles on Black Friday as well as back-to-back 100-yard games in Week 6 and 7 wins against the Commanders and Saints, respectively. The Philadelphia native also showcased his pass-catching talents, specifically against Washington when he totaled 175 yards from scrimmage, including a go-ahead 55-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter.
"He's a dynamic player," Johnson said. "I've known that about him since he came into the league, firsthand up there in Detroit, and certainly last year I wasn't surprised about the year he had. So, is he capable of more? Absolutely. He absolutely is. He's a vital part of what we do here."
Monangai also played a crucial role in the Bears' ground attack last season. He blossomed when he was called upon Nov. 2 in Cincinnati to start in place of an injured Swift. Carrying the ball 26 times, the Rutgers product totaled 176 yards in the Bears' thrilling 47-42 victory over the Bengals.
Monangai went on to total 783 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 169 carries in the regular season, while also adding 164 receiving yards on 18 receptions. His 947 scrimmage yards were the second most on the team behind Swift.
The 2025 seventh-round selection earned the trust of his coaches and veteran teammates through his work ethic inside Halas Hall and willingness to be coached, which allowed him to carve out a valuable role in Johnson's offense.
"There are a lot of things I can improve on for sure," Monangai said at the end of his rookie campaign. "I was just coming into this thing just trying to gain the trust of the organization, gain the trust of my teammates, make them feel like they made the right decision in bringing me here, and then trying to help us win games at the end of the day. We fell short at the end of the season, but personally, looking at it, like I said, I did some good things and there are definitely some things I can build off of."
Other returning running backs include fourth-year veteran Roschon Johnson and third-year pro Brittain Brown. Johnson appeared in seven contests while battling various injuries last season. Brown spent most of the season on the practice squad but was active for three games, including when he recorded his first NFL carry and touchdown in the Week 9 victory over the Bengals.
New to the running back room are veteran Salvon Ahmed and undrafted rookie Coleman Bennett. Entering his sixth NFL season, Ahmed has appeared in 38 career games, all with the Dolphins (2020-23), totaling 593 rushing yards and five TDs on 163 carries.
Bennett signed with the Bears after playing his final collegiate season at Kennesaw State, following one year at Rice (2024) and four years at Bucknell (2020-23).
The running backs will be led by new position coach Eric Studesville, who was hired in February after the departure Eric Bienemy. Studesville is a 29-year NFL coaching veteran who most recently served as associate head coach / running backs coach in Miami (2018-25). He entered the NFL coaching ranks with the Bears as an offensive quality control coach from 1997-2000.
"I think I'm just myself," Studesville said. "I go in there. I have a philosophy of how I like to do things, of how I see things. I have to obviously tailor that to Ben and Press [Taylor], and what this offense requires, and what they want me to do, and that is first and foremost in that, and we talk through those things, and then the things that are the foundations and fundamentals of this offense, we're going to continue to do those things, and we're going to build on all the little things."
