The Chicago Bears hold the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft for the second consecutive year. Last season, the Bears shipped off the pick to the Carolina Panthers for a haul that included wide receiver DJ Moore and a first-round pick, which turned out to be No. 1 overall.
Will the Bears move the pick like they did last offseason?
The early indications are the Bears will move on from quarterback Justin Fields and select USC quarterback Caleb Williams No. 1 overall. It would require a “historic” haul for Chicago to trade the pick.
While Fields improved in 2023, he still hasn’t proved he can be a consistent starting NFL passer. And with him entering his fourth season, a decision about his contract will need to be made. Are the Bears comfortable enough to pick up his fifth-year option for 2025 and then pay him huge money?
Probably not.
Williams is an elite talent and, even better for the Bears, allows them to reset the rookie contract clock for the next five seasons.
What if the Bears traded the pick? How far would they feel comfortable moving down? Some of that would depend on the compensation, but moving outside the top three would likely mean Chicago has no shot at the top three quarterback prospects (Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels).
Courtney Cronin and Field Yates of ESPN recently went through six different scenarios for the Bears involving trading the No. 1 pick and Fields. One of those scenarios involved the Washington Commanders.
The Commanders own the No. 2 overall pick and recently hired offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, who is close to Williams. Williams also happens to be from Washington, D.C.
If the two teams struck a deal, here’s what Yates suggests the Commanders could give up for the No. 1 overall selection: the No. 2 pick, a 2024 second-round pick (No. 40) and a 2025 first-round pick.
If you truly believe Williams is your guy, no price is too great to make the move. However, if you have Williams at the top of your board but have close grades on Maye and Daniels, it would make sense to stay at No. 2 and keep your draft capital.
The same logic applies to the Bears. What if they have a similar grade on Maye or Daniels? Trading the pick makes even more sense because they could land one of the other passers and still walk away with two additional premium picks.
Fields recently unfollowed Chicago on his social media accounts, so perhaps a decision by the Bears is coming soon.
