The winners and losers in the Chicago Bears trading the No. 1 pick
By Todd Welter
Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles gave up partial ownership of the NFL offseason when he traded the No. 1 overall pick to the Carolina Panthers.
Ryan Poles got a good return for relinquishing controlling the pre-draft trade market. The Chicago Bears will still draft in the top 10 as the Panthers swapped the No. 9 pick to move up.
The Panthers are also sending a late second-round pick (No. 61), a 2024 first-round pick, a 2025 second-rounder, and wide receiver DJ Moore.
Ryan Poles acquired a No. 1 wide receiver for quarterback Justin Fields (we will get to him in a bit) and now has four draft picks in this year’s top 75.
Plus, the Carolina Panthers do not project to be a playoff team in 2023 so the first-round pick next year has a good chance to be in the top 10. The Chicago Bears now have a future that includes two first-round picks in 2024, two second-round picks in 2025, and a cleaned-up salary cap.
Ryan Poles’ first major move appears on paper to be a winner. Some others came out as winners while some parties are losers in this deal.
Justin Fields is a clear winner in this deal.
Fields will be throwing to Moore, Chase Claypool, and Darnell Mooney. That is a massive upgrade over last season’s receiver corps that included N’Keal Harry, Byron Pringle, and Equanimeous St. Brown. He was given an extension, but St. Brown has no guarantee of making the team.
Moore posted three consecutive 1000 yards receiving between 2019-2021. He only gained 888 yards last season, but still had seven touchdown catches. Also, he had to deal with Carolina’s quarterback carousel. Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, and PJ Walker all started games for the Panthers.
That is one reason the Panthers made the trade.
Fields now has three legit receiving targets. Yes, Chase Claypool did not perform well after coming over in a midseason trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Injuries and having to learn a whole new offense were big contributors to his poor performance.
Hopefully, Claypool will spend the off-season working on developing chemistry with Fields.
Mooney can go back to being a No. 2 or No. 3 receiver. He was thrust into being a top target, but he is a better fit in a supporting role.
Add in Cole Kmet’s breakout season and Fields has some weapons to move the ball downfield.
This trade also signals that Ryan Poles is all in on Justin Fields as the franchise quarterback of the Chicago Bears. There was some speculation that Poles would use the No. 1 pick on one of the quarterback prospects and move on from Fields. Ryan Poles did not draft Fields. Fields also emerged as a playmaker but still has ways to go as a pocket passer.
That is why there was a belief that Poles would reset the rookie contract clock and go with a rookie quarterback.
Instead, Ryan Poles is going to see it through with Justin Fields. Poles still needs to address the offensive line but getting Moore is the step in the right direction to help Fields realize his immense potential.