The Chicago Bears had the Panthers crying in March
The Chicago Bears landed their most important roster newcomer so far this offseason via trade. The Bears traded the number one overall pick to the Carolina Panthers in return for the ninth pick, D.J. Moore, next year’s Panthers’ first-round pick, and two second-round picks. The trade reportedly had the Panthers’ front office emotional after the deal was made.
Moore’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, was a guest on the Pat McAfee Show Wednesday. Rosenhaus said the Panthers didn’t want to trade Moore, but the Bears insisted on getting Moore in return for the pick the Panthers needed to draft their top choice at quarterback in April. The Panthers were in tears when they broke the news to Moore:
“The Panthers were in tears, literally they called D.J., it was emotional for them,” Rosenhaus said.
He thinks all parties are happy, as Moore will be valued with the Bears. The Bears are happy with getting Justin Fields a number one wide receiver. The Panthers are ecstatic about being able to draft a player who they hope will be their franchise quarterback. Rosenhaus said time would tell if the Panthers made the right decision with the trade.
Time will tell if the Bears traded for the right player
Moore should excite the fanbase this offseason. He’s going to be a playmaker for the Bears. However, one has to wonder if the Panthers weren’t crying crocodile tears when they gave Moore notice of the trade. According to a report by The Athletic, Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer said Moore, a wide receiver coming off a sub-1,000-yard season, was less valuable than two of their best defensive linemen Poles wanted in Derrick Brown or Brian Burns:
“There were certain players that we never really wanted to trade,” Fitterer said. “It’s so hard to replace a Derrick Brown or Brian Burns, a pass rusher (and) an interior, dominant young player on a (first) contract. D.J., we didn’t want to move either. But it’s a little bit easier to replace a receiver than it is a pass rusher or a three-tech.”
Let’s say more than tearful emotions would have been lost if Poles had forced the Panthers to part with Brown or Burns.
How productive the trio Poles initially asked for in March is in the coming years will be key to figuring out how well Poles did in the trade this offseason. One has to consider Poles gave up eight spots in the first round of the draft, thus ensuring the Bears would give up the opportunity to for sure land a blue-chip defensive line prospect in Will Anderson, Tyree Wilson, and likely Jalen Carter.
Poles chose to accept a lesser valued position in the process of trading down to a draft spot where it becomes more challenging to pick pass rusher or three-tech. The Bears could have traded for Brown or Burns and taken the best wide receiver the team’s scouts think is available this year, like Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Most analysts’ mock drafts have the first wide receiver being taken outside the top ten in this year’s draft. This could prove more problematic after the Bears neglected to land an elite defensive lineman in free agency, even as Poles continues to say he wants to build those positions in the draft.
When? How?
Poles, owning the number one pick at the start of the offseason, had the opportunity to take the Bears’ biggest defensive need in the draft before the trade with the Panthers in March. Once again, he didn’t do it.
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