Ruben Hyppolite: Bears teammate Kyle Monangai is best running back he's faced
The Chicago Bears were expected to add a running back in the 2025 NFL draft, but they didn't do it until the seventh round with the selection of Kyle Monangai out of Rutgers.
Monangai, who was named to the All-Big Ten team in 2023 and 2024, is a powerful runner who put himself among the best running backs in the conference, and he left a lasting impression on one of his new teammates and fellow rookies.
Before they selected Monangai in the seventh round, the Bears drafted Maryland linebacker Ruben Hyppolite in the fourth round. Having gone against Monangai in their college careers -- both playing in the Big Ten -- Hyppolite had high praise for his new teammate, calling him the best running back he's ever faced.
"I tell everybody that he's the best running back I faced in my career in the Big Ten," Hyppolite told the CHGO Bears Podcast. "He has a great ability to run behind his pads, he's fast and slippery. He knows how to get through the holes and he knows how to finish runs, he's physical. When you look at him you don't really expect physicality with his size, when he runs the football you definitely feel it when you tackle him. I played him for about three, four years, so I had to see him every year, it was always a good battle."
Both Monangai and Hyppolite will have a chance to earn playing time as rookies with competition at their respective positions. There's optimism about both rookies having a role in what should be a very competitive roster for new head coach Ben Johnson.
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