There has finally been a leak regarding the Chicago Bears’ plans for the number one overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Bears have been quiet following general manager Ryan Poles end of season press conference about the team’s plans for Justin Fields and the number one pick.
The Chicago Bears have been gathering information
In January, Poles said the Bears were headed into “information gathering mode” regarding whether the team would retain Fields or draft his replacement. Per the Bears website:
“We are going to turn every stone to make sure that we are going to make a sound decision for our organization,” Poles said. “I did think Justin got better. I think he can lead this team. But at the same time, there is a unique situation. I have to look and our staff has to look at everything, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”
Poles did add that he needed to be blown away by one of the quarterback prospects to choose them over Fields.
Poles might have found his guy.
The Bears want a crazy haul for the No. 1 pick
According to a report by the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport on Saturday morning, the Bears would only accept a “crazy” return for the number one pick. Rapoport takes that to mean the Bears are ready to draft a quarterback with the number one pick. He thinks Caleb Williams is the most logical option at number one:
If someone is going to pry the No. 1 overall selection away from the Bears, they are going to have to pay — and pay a lot.
Chicago would need a historic haul of draft picks and overall compensation to move off the first pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, sources say. In the words of one source, it would have to be “crazy.”
That indicates the Bears, who received the pick in a mammoth trade last offseason with the Panthers, are more likely than not to make the pick and land their new franchise QB.
USC star Caleb Williams is currently No. 1 on Daniel Jeremiah’s Top 50 list on NFL.com, and many evaluators around the NFL agree. Those who have scouted him view him as a special player, and his scouting picture is becoming clearer the more time teams spend on him.
The Bears are primed to trade Justin Fields
I honestly expected this type of leak to Rapoport to come closer to the NFL Combine at the end of the month than to the Super Bowl. The Bears would have a chance to meet with Williams in Indianapolis before letting the league know they’re ready to trade Fields.
However, it’s clear the Bears are ready to signal to other teams they’re prepared to negotiate a deal for Fields in mid-February. The Bears cannot officially trade Fields until the start of the league new year in March. The Bears now have a month to talk with teams to try to have a deal in place before free agency.
Of course, it’s possible an NFL team would be willing to give the Bears a “crazy” return for the rights to draft Williams. But the price the Bears want won’t be anywhere close to the Fitzgerald-Spielberger NFL Draft Trade Value Chart.
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