Ahead of the Bears’ season finale against the Vikings on Sunday, there’s not really much to watch for when it comes to Chicago. Justin Fields has already been ruled out, there’s nothing at stake and the Bears are in a position to land the No. 1 overall pick.
Safe to say, the attention of Bears fans has been on the 2023 offseason for at least the last month. So the focus heading into the finale is where Chicago will ultimately wind up selecting in the draft.
ESPN’s Jordan Reid unveiled his first 2023 NFL mock draft, where he has the Bears staying put at No. 2 overall and selecting a defensive talent to build around in Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter.
The Bears are still in the early stages of their roster reconstruction and lack marquee talent on both sides of the ball. General manager Ryan Poles should take the best prospect available. And since Chicago ranks last in the league in sacks (20) — and their leader in sacks is safety Jaquan Brisker (four) — improving along the defensive front should be at the top of this team’s priorities list this offseason.
Carter would give the Bears a rock solid 3-technique tackle up the middle. Remember that last offseason, Poles’ first big signing was adding tackle Larry Ogunjobi, whose deal was rescinded because of a failed physical. There’s still a large hole in the middle of the defense.
GM Ryan Poles has a lot of work to do this offseason, and deciding what to do with Chicago’s expected top-two draft selection will be a big decision. The Bears could certainly remain put at No. 2 and land a top defensive prospect like Carter or Alabama’s Will Anderson. But there will certainly be teams looking for a franchise quarterback that would be willing to move up and nab one.
But assuming Chicago elects to draft someone with that top-two pick, it certainly feels like Carter or Anderson is the guy.
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