It was one of the most memorable NFL trade deadlines in the history of the league. The Tuesday deadline passed, and several teams made significant moves that could impact not only this year, but the future — and the Chicago Bears were one of those teams.
For starters, of course, we saw the Bears unload the Robert Quinn contract on the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for a fourth-round pick. With Quinn not being much of a factor so far, that was a huge victory for Ryan Poles.
Secondly, we saw the Bears trade All Pro linebacker Roquan Smith to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for second and fifth-round picks. While it is sad to see such a great player go, the path was clear for Poles and Smith to break up — the Bears were never paying him.
But then, after a couple of selling moves, Poles went out and made a highly necessary trade, bringing in 6-foot-4, big play wide receiver Chase Claypool from the Pittsburgh Steelers. With just this move, we saw a lot of clarity come through. Now, going into next offseason, fans can start to see a plan unfold.
Going into the 2023 offseason, Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears now have a clearer view of their draft needs.
The Bears will have over $100 million in cap space next offseason, in addition to a whopping nine draft picks. Remember, those nine draft picks very well could turn into a number closer to 12, 13, etc. with how Poles does business.
Next offseason is an exciting thought, because right now, it looks like Poles is fully sold on keeping Justin Fields as his franchise quarterback — that’s a huge positive. To have a team with a plan in place at quarterback is a breath of fresh air. Fields looks like the real deal, and now it’s going to be about surrounding him with as much talent and protection as possible.
The draft is going to see a whole different level of talent come out next year, specifically at positions like wide receiver and edge rusher. Can the Bears get a premier player at either one of those?
We sat down and looked at an in-depth mock draft in wake of the trade deadline passing. Take a look at what the Bears were able to come away with.