Possible trade scenarios for Bears trading their No. 9 overall pick |
CHICAGO — The NFL Draft always brings about a storm of rumors. However, one of them could prove to be accurate. There has been growing speculation that Chicago will trade its No. 9 overall pick for a later pick in the first round and acquire more capital.
Last year, the Bears sat with the No. 9 overall pick and traded with the Philadelphia Eagles down to No. 10 to draft offensive lineman Darnell Wright. This year, the quarterback market is much greater, with J.J. McCarthy from Michigan now also projected to be a high first-rounder. Some teams in contention to make a move on the No. 9 overall pick are the Minnesota Vikings, Denver Broncos, and Las Vegas Raiders. Trade With Minnesota Vikings for No. 11 Overall After losing quarterback Kirk Cousins to free agency, the Vikings are without a quarterback to throw to elite receiver Justin Jefferson. To satisfy Jefferson and have a chance at the playoffs, Minnesota must acquire a quarterback in the draft. They would most certainly prefer one of the top prospects. Caleb Williams from USC, Jayden Daniels from LSU, and Drake Maye from UNC are projected to be the top three draft picks and would certainly be gone by the time the No. 9 overall pick comes around. So, the Vikings would be making this trade for McCarthy. Currently, they hold the No. 11 and No. 23 overall picks in the draft. In a scenario where Minnesota moves up to No. 9, the Bears would acquire No. 11 along with another pick, such as a second-round pick in the 2025 draft. Chicago is looking to build its draft capital, and while they would prefer a 2024 draft selection, a second-rounder is still worth the trade. Trading with Minnesota not only gives the Bears additional draft picks but also allows them to do this while still selecting the player they are after. This is especially true if it is someone on defense, such as Jared Verse from Florida State, as the New York Jets at No. 10 most likely will not go defense; they could also end up trading their pick if a team is looking at quarterback Bo Nix. Trade with Denver Broncos for No. 12 Overall The Broncos are broke because of the Russell Wilson debacle. They are perhaps in greater need of a quarterback than the Vikings. In addition, they showed more interest in McCarthy as their general manager, George Paton, attended Michigan’s Pro Day. Therefore, they may be a more likely trade candidate than Minnesota. Denver also lacks a second-round draft selection, so their trade could include a second-rounder in 2025. To make the deal happen, they could perhaps throw in a late-round pick in 2024, such as one of their sixth-round picks. For Chicago, there is not much difference between selecting No. 11 or No. 12. Again, this is particularly true if they are going after defense because this is a very offense-heavy draft, where teams are vying for quarterbacks, wide receivers, and offensive linemen. They could easily still select Verse or someone else on defense at No. 12. Trade with Las Vegas Raiders for No. 13 Overall The No. 13 overall pick is a little bit different from No. 11 or No. 12. The Raiders are certainly another quarterback-needy team since Aidan O’Connell is not a permanent solution for Las Vegas. Las Vegas has more to give Chicago since they possess a second-round pick. However, trading from No. 13 to No. 9 would most likely require more than a second-rounder, such as throwing in a sixth-rounder or one of their seventh-round picks. The Raiders would be going after McCarthy to become their franchise quarterback, but dropping back to No. 13 could be too costly for the Bears. If Chicago is going defense, then this is not that much different than No. 11 or No. 12. However, if they are looking at an offensive lineman or wide receiver, certainly whoever they are looking at will be gone by No. 13 versus No. 9. So, while this could bring in more draft capital, it could also cost Chicago who they are ultimately trying to go after. One potential ramification, especially if the Bears trade all the way back to No. 13 is the Vikings or Broncos also trading up, such as one of them trading for the No. 10 pick with the New York Jets to acquire a quarterback. This would bode well for Chicago since they would not be in need of a quarterback since it is incredibly likely they will be using the No. 1 overall pick on Williams. Further, they would most likely not entertain trading down with the No. 9 without the quarterback situation being settled. Another consideration is trading back twice They could do this whether the initial trade is with Minnesota, Denver, or Las Vegas. Trading with the Raiders would perhaps be the biggest sign of looking to trade back again because it shows their willingness to fall back later in the draft. If Chicago is intending to do this, they could be going after edge rusher Laiatu Latu from UCLA. Latu is an elite rusher but could easily fall back in the draft solely because of the prominence of first-round offensive talent. Latu also visited the Bears on Monday, meaning they are showing some interest in him. Sitting at No. 9, or even No. 13, they most likely would not draft Latu. But, if they traded back further, that is where Latu could come into play. Until the NFL Draft occurs or Chicago makes a trade, which is incredibly unlikely to happen before the draft, we are left to speculate about what general manager Ryan Poles and the rest of the organization have planned for the draft. The first round of the draft is April 25 (8 p.m./ABC) and will be highly important in shaping Chicago for the foreseeable future.
