The Chicago Bears have the 9th overall pick, which puts them in a good spot. History shows that teams can land good players at that position almost every year. Charles Cross, Patrick Surtain, Ed Oliver, Mike McGlinchey, Leonard Floyd, Anthony Barr, Luke Kuechly, and Tyron Smith are only the most recent examples. It always depends on how the board unfolds in the first eight picks. Few people have a better idea of how this could go two weeks from now than ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The longtime insider has some of the strongest connections around the league.
That is why it was interesting when Jacob Infante of Windy City Gridiron talked to him about the upcoming NFL draft. They talked about several things, including presumptive #1 pick Caleb Williams. However, perhaps the most telling comments came when Schefter was asked about what would happen with the top three wide receivers in the class. Obviously, Bears fans are hopeful that one of them will get to the 9th spot. While possible, Schefter made it sound like the odds aren’t as high as you might think.
“Those [three] guys are going to fly off the board,” he responded. “I expect that all three of them will be gone within the first 10 picks. I don’t see a way that one of those three wide receivers that you mentioned makes it past pick No. 10. There’s a real chance that they could be gone, say, picks 4, 5, 7, some combination of that sort. They’re going to be top-10 picks, those three wide receivers. So you got three quarterbacks, three wide receivers, an offensive tackle, a defensive player like Dallas Turner. That gives you an idea of your top 10 picks in this upcoming draft.”
Adam Schefter probably mentioned those picks for a good reason.
The Arizona Cardinals sit at #4. They have a glaring need at wide receiver since Chris Moore and Michael Wilson are their best options right now. Next is the Los Angeles Chargers at #5. While they could go offensive line, the fact is they let both Mike Williams and Keenan Allen out the door, leaving Justin Herbert with few viable targets to throw to. Then there are the Tennessee Titans at #7. While many believe they will target offensive line help at that spot, especially after signing Calvin Ridley in free agency, they could always look to give Will Levis as many weapons as possible.
If it plays out as Adam Schefter said, the Bears’ options with the 9th pick become clearer. Either they take their preferred offensive tackle or pass rusher, or they trade down. That latter feels more likely in that scenario. There is a strong possibility they can land one of those positions further down the board while adding to their slim inventory of four picks. Perhaps GM Ryan Poles already has a good idea of how things will go when the action begins, which might explain why the Bears have been meeting with so many players expected to go in the middle-to-late 1st round.
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