People are already discussing what the Chicago Bears will do with their two 1st round picks in April. The trouble is it’s hard to answer that question before seeing what they do in free agency. Team approaches to the draft are often dictated by what holes they do or don’t plug with veterans on the market. Last season was a perfect example. When the Bears didn’t secure a starting tackle opposite Braxton Jones, it became apparent GM Ryan Poles would likely target one early in the draft. Darnell Wright arrived a month later.
The same goes for this off-season. As of now, projections for the Bears often center around a quarterback at #1 overall and a wide receiver at #9. It makes sense. This is a strong draft class for the receiver position, especially at the top. That said, Poles has often said he prefers to target “premium” positions early in the draft. Wide receiver is not one of them. So it might make more sense to go after a quality veteran free agent to pair with D.J. Moore. Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus mentioned two names that could see a strong push from Chicago in March.
One is a former All-Pro, and the other is a former Moore teammate.
“24. WR CALVIN RIDLEY, JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
Potential landing spot(s): Chicago Bears, Kansas City Chiefs
With D.J. Moore in place, Chicago could get two players who are interchangeable as X-receivers up on the line and as good move/Z-receivers with alignment versatility. Both can create separation vertically, but Ridley could take the top off defenses even more and let Moore utilize his high-end after-the-catch abilities at the short and intermediate levels…
…76. WR CURTIS SAMUEL, WASHINGTON COMMANDERS
Potential landing spot(s): Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins
Bears star wideout D.J. Moore is very close friends with Samuel from their shared time with the Carolina Panthers, and perhaps there’s something to be taken about Moore’s influence in Chicago from the Bears hiring Moore’s former wide receivers coach at Maryland in Chris Beatty, though Beatty has had several college and NFL stops and is certainly a deserving candidate regardless. Samuel offers a skill set the Bears seemingly tried to acquire in drafting Velus Jones Jr. — he can carry the ball out of the backfield and also rack up yards after the catch from slot and wide alignments.”
Either player would be a big help to the Chicago Bears.
Ridley was a budding star after the 2020 season, going for over 1300 yards in Atlanta. However, he was soon busted for gambling on NFL games and missed most of 2021 and 2022. He finally returned last season with the Jacksonville Jaguars. While there were hiccups along the way, Ridley still finished with over 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns. He remains the crisp route-running vertical threat he’d been before the suspension. As for Samuel, he had his best season in 2020 playing alongside Moore, going for 851 yards and three touchdowns. While he hasn’t been able to top that in Washington, he’s still been a productive player despite quarterback issues.
Much of this will come down to how much the Chicago Bears are willing to pay. Ridley is projected to earn somewhere in the range of $16.25 million per year on his next contract. Samuel will require closer to $9 million and is actually two years younger. So if Poles and Matt Eberflus think there is still untapped potential with him, that feels like the more logical target. Still, Ridley is the more proven weapon at this stage. If they’re aiming to make life as easy as possible for their next quarterback, he might be the safer choice.
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