What are the Chicago Bears going to do with their first overall pick? Are they going to trade it for a legendary haul? Will they use it? Who will they take if they do? All of these questions are going to be answered in the biggest offseason of general manager Ryan Poles’ career.
All signs point to Chicago trading Justin Fields and drafting a new quarterback with the first overall pick. A lot of people out there think that is the right move to make. USC quarterback Caleb Williams is expected to be the first quarterback off the board, and some scouts consider him to be a “generational” talent.
Not everybody thinks the Bears should either trade the pick or draft a quarterback though. NFL Network’s Cynthia Frelund debuted her first mock draft last week, and it was very interesting. She had Chicago passing on a quarterback entirely and taking Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt at No. 1. This would allow the Bears to keep Fields and build the offense around him.
Alt is going to be a very good offensive lineman in the NFL, and Frelund believes he has what is needed to be the first overall pick in the draft. She had Williams going second to the Washington Commanders while the New England Patriots ended up with North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye of North Carolina. Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who a lot of Bears fans love, ended up with the Arizona Cardinals with pick No. 4.
Frelund clearly believes that the Bears can win with a quarterback like Fields, if they surround him with top talent. That became even more clear when she had Chicago taking LSU wideout Malik Nabers at No. 9.
She also clearly doesn’t think that Williams is a generational talent worth moving off a guy like Fields for. It is a very interesting perspective and Poles should be evaluating things from all angles. This is certainly one of them because adding these types of weapons would be amazing if Fields could find a way to be a franchise guy.
Throughout the rest of the offseason, there are going to be tons of mock drafts and opinions thrown out there by notable people. Frelund is no exception, and her mock draft makes a lot of sense if keeping Fields is the endgame.
