The Chicago Bears pulled off a slight surprise this week. After crushing the New England Patriots 33-14 on Monday Night Football, many felt the team might shy away from doing anything at the trade deadline. GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus would stay the course and see if they could get this team into the playoffs. It’s not like the NFC is a daunting mountain to climb this year. Then the news dropped that Robert Quinn had been traded to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 4th round pick in 2023.
Most experts gave most of the credit to Eagles GM Howie Roseman for pulling off another steal. Not everybody agrees with that. Some believe the deal was far more even than Roseman fans want to admit. Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus explained. Quinn only had one sack so far this season. He’s on the older side and carries an expensive contract. Under normal circumstances, that likely would result in a 5th or 6th rounder at best. However, Poles used the win over New England and a nifty manipulation of the media to force Philadelphia’s hand and up their offer.
Maybe my favorite aspect to this trade – fitting considering he was dealing with Howie Roseman – Ryan Poles pulled a little rope-a-dope here.
This is from Jeremy Fowler’s article today (link: https://t.co/BGTZdeGKSp):
Not sharing to mock at all, lotta chatter this time of year pic.twitter.com/o2OO2hCPQc
— Brad Spielberger, Esq. (@PFF_Brad) October 26, 2022
Wheeled and dealed with the best of them a few days after beating the breaks off the New England Patriots… and people are doubting this man.
Didn’t see this from R1P1
— Brad Spielberger, Esq. (@PFF_Brad) October 26, 2022
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Ryan Poles got more than he probably should’ve.
He knew the Eagles were hunting for pass rush help. He also knew their efforts to land a big fish weren’t going well. Roseman has a reputation for trying to win every trade negotiation. That means the Bears’ GM had to tread carefully and play his cards right. Lucky for him, he had assistant GM Ian Cunningham by his side. Cunningham worked in Philadelphia from 2017 through 2021. He knew Roseman well and how to approach the GM regarding trade talks.
In the end, it was a deal that worked out well for both sides. Philadelphia gets their needed pass rusher. Chicago unloads an expensive contract and improves their pick total in the first four rounds to five. One is thinking about the present, and the other the future. That was always the plan for Ryan Poles. It looks like he executed that plan well. To see him hold his nerve against arguably the best wheeler and dealer the NFL has seen in decades is a good sign.
