Draft Insider Strongly Hints At Team To Watch For Chicago Bears' #9 Pick

Discussions around what the Chicago Bears will do with their #9 overall pick remain ongoing. Nobody is sure which direction GM Ryan Poles may go. It appears to be split into two primary camps at this point. One thinks the Bears will stay put and take one of the top receivers, hoping to give projected #1 pick Caleb Williams all the weapons he can handle. The other camp believes Poles will look to trade down, hoping to add more draft capital since the Bears only have four picks going into the event.

What nobody can figure out is who their potential trade partners could be. There is no shortage of possibilities. Maybe Las Vegas tries to leapfrog Minnesota at #11 and Denver at #12 for a quarterback who slips. Maybe New Orleans or Cincinnati try to get in front of the Jets for one of the top offensive tackles. However, they might not be the ones to watch. Chris Trapasso is a draft analyst and insider for CBS Sports. He was asked whether the Bears would take one of the top receivers at #9 or trade down.

His answer was certainly telling.

This isn't the first time the Bills were mentioned for Chicago Bears' #9 pick.

Ever since they traded Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans, speculation has run rampant over what they will do at wide receiver. Josh Allen is a great player but even he is at the mercy of his weapons. Buffalo doesn't have any definitive #1 option with Diggs out of the picture. That means one of two things: either they think one will be there late in the 1st round, or they have plans to go up the board for one. Going from 28th overall to 9th feels like a staggering leap, but it's been done before. Cleveland made a similar jump from 27th in 2011 to grab Julio Jones.

The question is where the Bills feel Malik Nabers or Rome Odunze are worth the investment. It will take a future 1st round pick and more to make such a deal work. Dropping that far doesn't seem like something the Chicago Bears would be interested in unless they get significant compensation. Bills GM Brandon Beane doesn't fear being aggressive. He traded up for Josh Allen in 2018 and sent a huge package to Minnesota for Diggs. He's done minor trades up in the 1st round over each of the past two years.

This leap would be far bigger than anything he's ever tried. So, if Trepasso is correct, it will be because Buffalo believes they're landing a superstar.