The Chicago Bears have quite a lot of work ahead of them in this years NFL draft. The Caleb Williams and Justin Fields debate may not be settled today, but the draft is looming and other teams are already making some major moves. With the first and ninth overall picks in the draft, the Bears have some valuable capital to work with to help build towards next season.
It would appear the Bears are going to move on from QB Justin Fields and take Caleb Williams at the top of the draft, but then the real grind starts. This draft is seemingly loaded with wide receiver talent and the Bears could use some help behind DJ Moore. There could be a route to moving that 9th pick and trying to get Marvin Harrison Jr, another potentially generational player, but would the Bears need to be so hasty?
What Are The Bears Options?
Once Caleb Williams is off the board, other teams could try to get their own QB of the future with Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, and more with a deep QB class and a league full of mediocre QB production. If there is in fact a run of quarterbacks off the board after Williams, the Bears could stay put at 9 and hope for Marvin Harrison Jr to drop. As unlikely as that may be, names like Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze could be waiting for the Bears anyway.
Harrison has the name and the ability to be a star in the NFL, but a no show at the NFL Combine after being scheduled to speak could hamper his draft stock. Although he doesn’t have much to prove in the talent department, the Bears don’t want to bring in a diva wide receiver either. Skipping out on a promised appearance as one of your last chances to impress teams isn’t exactly the high character move most teams look for.
In a mock draft done by Dane Brugler from The Athletic, the Bears could trade up to the fifth overall pick with the Los Angeles Chargers for the 9th, 75th, and a 2025 fifth round pick. A decent haul if you were planning to take Rome Odunze anyway, as bold as a move as it may seem in such a loaded wide receiver class. Ryan Poles loves his draft picks, and has done well with those picks as of late.
A Justin Fields trade will likely only result in so much in return since he is going to cost a pretty penny in the long run for whatever team that decides to take a chance on him. A trade up in the draft would mean sacrificing those valuable picks, and may not be in the cards for the Bears GM. This deeply skilled draft actually could be pointing Poles in the opposite direction. The Bears could trade back for even more picks and still have a decent selection to add from to their wide receiver room.
A Brighter Bears Future
The Chicago Bears fanbase is dying for success, and this year’s draft has the potential to put that offense in to high gear. Caleb Williams is no guarantee, and no first overall pick ever is. But with a few years into the Justin Fields era it seems it may be time to move on. The Bears defense got stronger as the season came to an end, and adding potential superstar Caleb Williams and a young skill player like Malik Nabers or Rome Odunze if Marvin Harrison Jr doesn’t fall to them could spell success for this so desperate franchise.
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