Caleb Williams is going to be picked first overall by the Chicago Bears in next month’s NFL Draft. That is no longer a question. It’s happening.
However, the NFC North organization is also slated to pick at No. 9.
Chicago could go in a lot of different directions with their second top-10 selection. Or it could chose to trade back and acquire additional capital for the later rounds.
All of the possibilities are on the table and the Bears are going to take a unique approach to deciding on what to do. They are going to hold a debate. Literally!
The staff is going to split into teams, much like a group project in high school. Each team will be tasked with presenting its case for a specific player and/or position. Divide and conquer.
According to general manager Ryan Poles, there are three primary positions to discuss. Two are on offense. One is on defense.
Once each “team” builds out their case, they will present it to the rest of the Bears’ brass.
I like the numbers in terms of the talented players that can get to nine. We’re going to do some cool things when we get back, kind of break into teams. One team is going to talk about [why] the tackle position is the best to go after, [why] the receiver’s the best, [why] the defensive end’s the best and use factual information to spit that out — and we’ll have a debate in terms of what’s more impactful for our football team, short-term and long-term.
— Ryan Poles
Poles also left the door open for a trade. This year’s class is very deep at wide receiver, so perhaps there is an opportunity to move back and get two for the price of one.
To make the top 10 even more interesting, it is very possible that a signal-caller could be drafted in each of the first four spots. The non-quarterback draft may not even begin until No. 5. That would leave an even greater wealth of talent on the board when Chicago comes back up at No. 9!
Williams will be the first player off of the NFL Draft board on April 25. He is going to replace Justin Fields.
Will the Bears add a pass-catcher or someone to protect him? Or neither?
We will find out which staff “team” presented the best case during their debate eight picks later!