The NFL draft is fading further and further into the rearview mirror. Yet for many Chicago Bears fans, it’s still fresh. They can still feel the excitement of that moment when they traded up in the 1st round to grab Justin Fields The details are well-known by now. GM Ryan Pace surrendered additional 1st, 4th, and 5th round picks to the New York Giants for their 11th overall pick.

What makes it all the more interesting is the scenario could’ve been way different. Perhaps the one that came closest was a couple of picks earlier. The Denver Broncos sat at #9 overall. Though some speculated the team might take a QB, the general feeling was they’d target a cornerback or look to move down. According to Mike Silver of NFL.com, GM George Paton fielded calls from several teams leading up to the draft. The Bears being one of them.

So why didn’t a deal happen? Vic Fangio had a perfect line to describe it.

In the days leading up to the draft, Paton had received preliminary overtures from the Eagles (picking 12th overall in Round 1), Vikings (14th overall), Bears (20th) and Saints (28th). As he sat in his office early Wednesday morning, Paton wondered if he might receive an exorbitant offer when the Broncos were on the clock that he’d be tempted to take, perhaps from a team desperate for a quarterback.

“Maybe we get a haul,” Paton said. “Maybe we can take advantage of a team that is, as Vic would say, ‘horny.’ I don’t know why he always uses that word, but it cracks me up.”

Bless Fangio. That man never stops being solid gold as a personality. The simplest translation here is Denver heard the offers and didn’t like any of them enough to make a deal happen. That didn’t stop teams from trying. The calls continued even as the draft got started. Paton kept taking them, making sure he had a clear picture of what he could get if he chose to move. In the end, it wasn’t enough.

Though three teams called when Denver was on the clock, he rejected their trade-down offers and decided to select Surtain, believing the second-generation shutdown corner was too good to pass up.

This is further confirmation of what was suspected. The Bears were very interested in moving up to #9 for Fields. Paton knew that and did his best to get Pace to sign off on a deal on Denver’s terms. Somewhere in the vicinity of a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd round picks in 2021 and a 1st in 2022. Clearly, he felt Chicago was “hornier” than any other team seeking a quarterback. To his credit, Pace recognized the asking price was too high and chose to pass.

Chicago Bears picked the perfect time for self-control

Make no mistake. Paton wasn’t the only one who likely felt he could get an exorbitant price out of Pace. Plenty of people in the media and around the league felt the Bears GM and his entire regime was in a pressure cooker. They were operating with their jobs on the line and needed to land a quarterback. Almost always in those situations, a man will pay through the nose to get what he wants.

Yet despite this, Pace did right by the Chicago Bears. He held himself in check and waited for a better opportunity to surface. That came two picks later. He got his quarterback and managed to do it without giving up any Day 2 pick this year or next year. A far cry from the massive packages it would’ve taken to reach the top 5 or go after the likes of Russell Wilson. He secured a hopeful future for his franchise and didn’t mortgage it in the process.

Like him or hate him, Pace deserves respect for that.

Justin Fields has a lot to live up to. The Bears made it clear they think he can be what they’ve been missing for decades now. That sort of pressure is nothing new to him. He’s been in the spotlight pretty much since high school. That part of the job won’t bother him. His focus is on mastering the speed and complexity of the NFL. The final hurdle every young QB must clear to be considered the best.