Kyle Monangai and Ashton Jeanty entered the NFL on opposite ends of the hype spectrum, but with five weeks remaining in the 2025 regular season, it’s fair to argue Monangai has been the more impactful rookie.
The Las Vegas Raiders made Jeanty the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 draft. Through 12 games, he has 181 carries for 635 yards (3.5 yards per carry) and four rushing touchdowns, also grabbing 43 passes for 251 yards and four more scores. His eight total TDs lead all rookies, and he had a 155-yard, three-touchdown explosion against the Bears in Week 4. Only one rookie running back has multiple 100-yard rushing games this season, though, and he’s in Chicago.
The Bears waited until the seventh round to grab Monangai with the No. 233 pick. Through Week 12, the former Rutgers standout has 121 carries for 591 yards and five touchdowns, averaging an impressive 4.9 yards per carry. He also has hauled in 10 receptions for 97 yards.
Monangai has gone over 100 rushing yards twice, including 176 yards in a wild shootout win over the Bengals and 130 yards and a score in Week 13 during the Bears’ Black Friday win in Philadelphia.
A Closer Look at What Bears RB Kyle Monangai Has Done in Comparison to Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty
GettyChicago Bears RB Kyle Monangai has been a steal, whereas the jury is still out on Raiders star Ashton Jeanty.
Physically, the two backs are almost mirror images. Both are 5-foot-8, with Monangai at 207 pounds and Jeanty at 208. Financially, though, they’re on the opposite end of the salary spectrum.
Monangai’s rookie deal is an absolute bargain: four years, $4.33 million with just $128,140 guaranteed and a 2025 cap charge under $900,000. Jeanty, as a top-10 pick, inked a four-year, $35.9 million deal that is fully guaranteed and a 2025 cap hit north of $6.5 million.
It’s clear that each back entered the league under very different circumstances, as well.
In Chicago, first-year head coach Ben Johnson has built one of the NFL’s most balanced and explosive rushing attacks, with a ground game that ranks second in the league at 153.8 rushing yards per contest. Monangai has been the perfect complement to D’Andre Swift, giving Johnson a tough and athletic one-two punch at RB. The Bears’ O-line has also been among the league’s best.
Jeanty hasn’t had the same structural support by a long shot. The 2-10 Raiders have had a turbulent year, with Pete Carroll firing offensive coordinator Chip Kelly in late November. Jeanty has also had to run behind one of the league’s lowest-graded offensive lines.
Bears Have an Unquestioned Draft Steal in Monangai
Jeanty has been the centerpiece of Las Vegas’ offense almost from Week 1, leading the team in carries. Monangai has been more of a complementary piece in Chicago’s backfield committee, but his emergence midseason has been huge for Chicago.
“Jeanty remains awesome and will probably be a good player for a long time,” Scott Bair of Marquee Sports Network wrote on November 30. “But the value Ryan Poles received from a seventh-round pick is insane. If we’re talking value, it’s hard to argue against the Monangai selection. … He doesn’t fumble. He runs hard. He doesn’t have elite, breakaway speed, but his follows blocks and his tracks are consistent and he’s productive as heck in this system.”
If Jeanty eventually becomes a star — and he very well may — this conversation may look a lot different in a few years. For now, though, Monangai has been the more impactful rookie relative to his role, cost and the stakes of the games he’s helping the Bears win.
“Most seventh-round picks don’t turn out,” Bair added. “He has been excellent and an unreal value from a draft perspective. He fell into a good system with Johnson and a next-level offensive line but Monangai’s attention to detail and ability and unwillingness to fumble makes him a true draft steal.”
Kyle Monangai vs. Ashton Jeanty Comparison Looks Very Good for Bears