Why Keldric Faulk Is The One Draft Pick Bears Fans Should Dread
Last year, I warned people that the Chicago Bears needed to stay far away from Texas A&M defensive end Shemar Stewart ahead of the 2025 draft. He’d just dominated the scouting combine, showcasing a ridiculous array of size, power, and athleticism. People were drooling at what he could potentially accomplish. My biggest concern was why this obvious ability hadn’t been translated into better production. Stewart had only 4.5 sacks in three seasons, despite playing on a pretty talented defensive line. Sure enough, his rookie season was a disaster with the Cincinnati Bengals. This season, the same concerns surround Keldric Faulk.
On paper, the Auburn defensive end has everything you could want. He’s big, long, and a standout athlete for his size. When you look at the measurable, he checks every box that Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen is known to have for that position. However, the same question comes up with him as it did with Stewart. Where is the production to reflect this? While Faulk’s stats aren’t nearly as bad as Stewart’s, they’re still questionable, especially when you compare them to other prominent players with similar measurables.
| Player | Height | Weight | Arm Length | College Career Production | College Starts / Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keldric Faulk | 6’6″ | 276 lbs | 34 3/8″ | 110 Tackles, 19.5 TFL, 10.0 Sacks | 24 Starts / 38 Games |
| Carlos Dunlap | 6’6″ | 277 lbs | 34 5/8″ | 84 Tackles, 26.0 TFL, 19.5 Sacks | 14 Starts / 40 Games |
| Tyree Wilson | 6’6″ | 271 lbs | 35 5/8″ | 121 Tackles, 32.0 TFL, 17.0 Sacks | 28 Starts / 44 Games |
| Calais Campbell | 6’8″ | 282 lbs | 35 3/4″ | 129 Tackles, 39.0 TFL, 19.5 Sacks | 25 Starts / 36 Games |
| Montez Sweat | 6’6″ | 260 lbs | 35 3/4″ | 101 Tackles, 29.5 TFL, 22.0 Sacks | 25 Starts / 30 Games* |
| Gregory Rousseau | 6’6″ | 266 lbs | 34 3/4″ | 59 Tackles, 21.0 TFL, 15.5 Sacks | 7 Starts / 15 Games |
| Ezekiel Ansah | 6’5″ | 271 lbs | 35 1/8″ | 72 Tackles, 13.0 TFL, 4.5 Sacks | 9 Starts / 31 Games |
| Arik Armstead | 6’7″ | 290 lbs | 33″ | 87 Tackles, 10.0 TFL, 4.0 Sacks | 18 Starts / 39 Games |
Keldric Faulk passes the eye test, but not the sniff test.
Getting 10 sacks in 38 games isn’t the best look for any supposed 1st round defensive lineman. Rousseau had 5.5 more despite playing 23 fewer games. Sweat had 12 more sacks despite only one more start. Even Wilson, who has been a major bust in Las Vegas, had much better production in a similar number of games. It’s hard not to feel like that is concerning. For all of Faulk’s ability, he lacks key traits that make for top pass rushers. He doesn’t have a great burst off the snap, lacks violent hands, and has inconsistent pad level.
Some say he might benefit by moving inside on passing downs. These are the exact same things that were said about Dayo Odeyingbo. We saw how that worked out. It doesn’t feel like Faulk offers anything the Bears are missing. He feels like a Diet Coke version of Montez Sweat, which doesn’t help them. It keeps the defense in the same spot they are now. Betting on a player to suddenly discover how to rush the passer despite facing much tougher competition doesn’t feel like smart business.
Faulk is a test to see how rigid the Bears are about traits.
We already saw how eager Allen was to find somebody with that body type when they signed Odeyingbo. There is no way they aren’t aware of Keldric Faulk and his dimensions. We’ll see if his lack of testing and inconsistent tape scares them away from taking that leap. Is it possible that the young defender becomes a success? Sure. There are exceptions to every rule. Talent isn’t his problem. It’s maximizing the talent. Some players don’t really do that until they get under NFL coaching.
The problem is that far more of them never figure it out. Has the Odeyingbo experience taught them a lesson? Faulk will be that litmus test, provided he’s on the board at #25. Teams are always willing to bet on traits, and his are enough to justify a top-20 pick. Still, it is worth noting that he hasn’t generated top-10 buzz at any point throughout the process, suggesting teams share similar reservations about him. The Bears are at a critical juncture in their climb to a Super Bowl. This is not a pick they can afford to gamble on just physical tools.