When the Chicago Bears selected tight end Colston Loveland with the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft, Cole Kmet admitted that he was initially “taken aback” by the decision.

From there, it didn’t take long for head coach Ben Johnson to utilize one of his best qualities: his ability to relate to players and bond with them. He made Kmet feel good about what they can do with two tight ends.

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Many good teams in the NFL run a 12-personnel offense, which means that two tight ends are used with two wide receivers and one running back. It seems like the Bears are poised to run this type of package a lot in 2025, with two very good pass-catching targets playing the tight end position.

For one, Johnson has earned a reputation for being an offensive guru — and someone who’s used 12 personnel often during his time as offensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions (2022-24). Now, he’s expected to carry that over to the Bears as the head coach. It may take some time, but his scheming was as good as it gets in Detroit.

Kmet is now realizing something that makes him excited to be part of an offense like this. With two tight ends on the field, he is now being guarded by a linebacker instead of a safety. In most cases, Kmet is going to be much faster than any linebacker defending him. When a safety is on him, it’s much more difficult to gain separation, which was the case before Loveland showed up.

What if a defense runs nickel (five defensive backs) to counteract this? Although they don’t have their running back of the future truly identified yet, it could be someone in the room right now or not, they can run the ball hard against nickel defenses. Either way, the team is improved with two guys playing tight end at a high level.

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Developing quarterback Caleb Williams is also a big part of what Johnson is trying to do in Chicago. With Loveland and Kmet, he has extra weapons alongside DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III, and D’Andre Swift out of the backfield. If the offensive line holds up the way that it’s been paid to do so, the requisite time to get these guys the ball will be there.

In last Sunday’s preseason stomping of the Buffalo Bills, the Bears used both tight ends right out of the game. One of them had each of the first three completions made by Williams (two to Loveland, one to Kmet). The starters didn’t play for more than two series, but there is evidence that this approach can be effective. Once the regular season begins, expect them both to have their fair share of targets in this 12-personnel offense.

In Friday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, they didn’t use their full playbook. The starters on offense also struggled early. As far as the tight ends, only Loveland played, making one catch for four yards. We didn’t seem them use 12 personnel the way that they will once they reach the field in games that count.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears should thrive with 12 personnel offense in 2025