A Chicago Bears trade up in the first round isn’t something fans are wild about. After all, GM Ryan Pace has done it each of the past two years. First for Leonard Floyd and then Mitch Trubisky. A team can’t keep giving up extra draft picks like that every year. Yet Pace has made it clear in the past. He believes a team should always look to get a difference-maker if the opportunity is there.
So if Pace has fallen in love with a particular prospect, one can’t dismiss the idea he’ll move up again. The Bears don’t have a ton of flexibility but they have enough to make a limited jump. The question is whether any teams might be willing to deal. People can speculate on the subject all day but most lack the hard evidence to support it.
Well some new buzz has begun to surface. Information that could be extremely interesting for the Bears in regards to their possible desires for a move up.
Denver could be the sweet spot for Chicago Bears trade up
Albert Breer of the MMQB has heard a ton of buzz surrounding the top of the first round. Most of it has to do with the Cleveland Browns but he did uncork a fascinating nugget regarding the Denver Broncos at #5. It seems their GM John Elway isn’t wild about staying put if the quarterback situation isn’t favorable for his team when they go on the clock.
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“It’s been out there that the Colts would consider a second move down the board from No. 6, but they may have competition among sellers. I’ve heard if Denver doesn’t like the quarterback that’s there at 5, whoever that is, then it’ll actively look at trying to get more picks. Two names that have been connected to the Broncos of late—Notre Dame G Quenton Nelson and Ohio State CB Denzel Ward—could be available further down the line. For what it’s worth, the same two names have been connected to the Bears at No. 8.”
It’s no secret the Bears have interesting Nelson. He’d make a perfect replacement for the departed Josh Sitton and they employ his former line coach Harry Hiestand. Most mock drafts don’t have Nelson going before the Broncos at #5. This means the Bears would have a high probability of nabbing him were they able to secure that pick.
As always it comes down to price. According to draft trade value charts, the #5 pick is worth 1700 points. The Bears’ #8 pick is worth 1400. That means it would take around third and fourth round picks to swing a fair deal. Unfortunately, the Bears don’t have a third due to the Trubisky trade from last year. So what to do?
The Bears’ second round pick is worth an estimated 510 points. That means it would be overspending to give that to Denver. If they wanted to make it fair, Pace would likely ask for a lower round pick or player in return. Perhaps Denver’s late third rounder (compensatory), valued at 104 points. It’s certainly intriguing to think about if nothing else.
