Ryan Poles turned the NFL draft on its head when he traded the 1st overall pick to the Carolina Panthers for a massive package of assets. It includes a future 1st round pick and wide receiver D.J. Moore. Most experts believe the Chicago Bears GM did a tremendous job engineering that deal. Now discussions have shifted to who Poles might consider taking with the 9th pick. Where it gets crazy is a growing suspicion that the Bears GM might not be done moving down. Rumors already surfaced shortly after the trade took place.
Now former Bears scout Greg Gabriel is fanning those flames. Remember, he has strong connections throughout the league. He’s also met with Poles personally and has a good idea of what the Bears GM seeks to accomplish. He explained on the Barroom Network that the threat of another trade down is very real. It isn’t only because he’d like to accumulate more picks, either. There is a belief, one Gabriel shares, that the true strength of this draft class lies between picks 20 and 40.
Ryan Poles may want picks in that range.
Right now, they have none. There is a massive gap between their 9th overall pick and the next one at 54th overall. They have zero selections between 20 and 40. So if Poles wants to get some, he may have to move down again. Gabriel makes it seem like he’s open to continue moving down until he’s in the 20s range. That would be absolutely wild. Nobody has ever traded down from the 1st overall spot in the draft to outside the top 15. Then again, Poles has made it clear he has no fear when it comes to doing things differently.
If he sees no discernable difference between the talent at #9 and #20, then it makes sense to move down. The question will be whether he can find somebody willing to trade with him. The quarterbacks will almost certainly be gone by that point. Maybe teams will be hoping to come up for cornerback helps, especially with Philadelphia right behind them at 10th overall. Ryan Poles may have to work to find takers. If nothing materializes, he likely has a good idea of who he’ll take at 9th overall.
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