One thing about Ryan Pace during his long tenure as Chicago Bears GM? He seems to take a savage delight in keeping everybody guessing as to his real intentions during an offseason. He did it in 2017 with Mitch Trubisky and again in 2018 with Khalil Mack. Yet it’s not just the deception regarding moves he does make. He also seems to relish seeing people stumble around moves he never intends to make.
A prime example occurred already this offseason when the Bears were feverishly attached to multiple trade rumors for quarterback Carson Wentz. Then after he was dealt to the Colts, it was finally revealed they’d never had much interest in him. Pace loves letting the rumor mill spin out of control even as he quietly goes about his business. Could he be doing that again?
There is evidence to suggest it.
For weeks now, everybody is convinced of one thing. The Bears are angling to move up in the 1st round to grab a quarterback. That is their endgame. Nothing else matters. SM’s own sources have said they’ve been exploring the idea. However, one question must be asked. How serious are they about it? Albert Breer of the MMQB made an interesting comment during his recent column.
“As far as I can tell, the Bears haven’t yet started calling around to teams in the upper reaches of the draft—maybe that’ll come, it just hasn’t yet.”
This would seem to suggest that while Chicago may have placed exploratory calls, they haven’t gotten serious about a move up. Breer wasn’t the only one to downplay the idea of a move up. Former exec and current ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, who is good friends with head coach Matt Nagy, said he believes the Bears aren’t likely to take a quarterback in the 1st round unless one falls to them at #20. They’re more focused on finding a player who can contribute immediately.
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A logical look at things back this Chicago Bears prediction up
Do they want a quarterback? Of course. Yet getting into the top 10 isn’t as easy as people make it sound. They need another team that is willing to accept dropping from such a high spot down to #20. That is hardly a guarantee. Getting one to do so at a fair price makes it even more difficult. If that weren’t enough, the Bears aren’t the only team that could be vying for those two remaining quarterbacks. New England and Washington are hot spots too and both hold higher picks than them.
Pace does have a track record of being aggressive. A big reason why many are convinced the Chicago Bears will do this. However, he also has bouts of practicality sprinkled throughout his tenure. He held firm at #8 in 2018 and took Roquan Smith even though they needed offensive line help. Last year he took a risk by taking Cole Kmet with his first 2nd round pick and grabbing Jaylon Johnson with the second. This despite many having Johnson graded higher as a prospect.
He’s shown a willingness to play the board.
Is it really so crazy to think he’d stand firm in the 1st round, take the best player at #20, and then reset for a QB move on Day 2? There are rumblings the Bears like some of the second-tier guys. Davis Mills of Stanford is one of them. This team is trying to walk a tightrope of competing in 2021 while also planning for the future. Giving up a massive package to go get a quarterback who may not play this year doesn’t exactly sound practical.
