Smoke had been starting to build over the past few days. The Chicago Bears were close to trading the #1 overall pick. While some teams were rumored to be in the discussions, it appears one took the lead in the past 48 hours. That is the Carolina Panthers. Owner David Tepper and new head coach Frank Reich seem intent on landing their quarterback of the future. GM Ryan Poles will move down to the 9th overall spot, collecting a massive return in draft capital along the way, including a 2nd in 2023, 1st in 2024, 2nd in 2025, and wide receiver D.J. Moore. Now the rebuild really gets interesting.
The entire package is a great one for the Bears. It gives them not only tons of extra draft capital, including a future 1st round pick and future 2nd, but it also lands them a dynamic wide receiver in his prime. Moore cracked 1,000 yards in three of the past four seasons with Carolina. He is only 25 years old too. He’s a sharp route runner with good speed and reliable hands. There is no doubt he should become Justin Fields’ go-to guy moving forward. He and Darnell Mooney could form a lethal tandem with the bigger Chase Claypool adding some additional flavor.
The Chicago Bears are suddenly in a fantastic position.
Poles still has a top 10 pick at 9th overall. If he plays his cards right, there should be no issue in finding a quality player at that spot. Initially, some wondered if he might take a stab at wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba. With Moore now in the mix, that is far less likely. The obvious play is either a pass rusher or offensive lineman. Some names that could be involved?
- Texas Tech EDGE Tyree Wilson
- Iowa EDGE Lukas Van Ness
- Northwestern OL Peter Skoronski
- Ohio State OT Paris Johnson Jr.
- Georgia OT Broderick Jones
The Chicago Bears seem to have played their hand perfectly. They get tons of quality draft capital to work with and a young, proven weapon for their quarterback. Now they have a chance to continue building around him in the coming weeks. That offense could look much more talented by the end of April. This is before even discussing what they might be able to do for the defense as well. One must give Poles credit. He’s not afraid to take risks.
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Thomas Gena and Tom Waddle must be in some kind of Dumbass of the Year contest. I can’t decide which one deserves it more.
Ryan Poles continues to prove his worth to the Chicago Bears. He is determined to build a championship caliber team in Chicago and in his second year they are definately going to be more competitive.
Praise Jeepis
We may never know the offers that were coming in. What if Houston never made an offer or if the Colts never offered enough capital? Gotta strike while the iron is hot. I think Moore has a lot to prove as he’s a bit of a head case who cost his team a game we all remember. Can he grow up and be a #1 WR? I hope so. The talent is there and he is better than any WR in the mid first round of this draft. So, pulling the trigger early is a bit scary but the return… Read more »
I can’t say that that I think they got the maximum out of this trade but I am not going to let the perfect become the enemy of the good.
I had not considered Moore as one of the chips but I he is a signifigant asset and the cobtract is actually well constructed for the Bear’s purposes. Biggest cost is upfront while there is a lot of cap space and it then can be terminated with little or no dead cap,