ESPN Ranks Chicago Bears Rookie Class Among The NFL's Best

GM Ryan Poles faced a brutal task when he took over the Chicago Bears. Not only did Ryan Pace leave behind a roster overloaded with older players and bloated contracts, but also only five picks in the 2022 draft. There was almost no wiggle room to improve. That left Poles with a tough decision. He could either maintain the status quo with the current core and do the best with what he had, or he could hit the reset button and start compiling resources. He chose the latter. Several key veterans were traded or let go. Through a series of moves, Poles was able to clear up future cap space and secure some extra draft picks.

Despite no 1st rounder, the Bears went from five picks in the 2022 draft to 11. Poles didn't have much quality, so he opted for quantity. In the end, it appears he did better than expected. Aaron Schatz and Alex Vigderman of ESPN compiled data on which NFL teams had the most productive rookie classes this season. To their surprise, the Bears slid into the eighth spot of their top 10. What makes it all the more impressive is they were the only ones to accomplish that feat without a 1st round pick.

That should give fans plenty of hope.

"8. Chicago Bears

The Bears used two second-round picks on defensive backs in the 2022 draft, and those were their major rookie contributors. But the Bears also had a lot of minor contributions from useful rookies, with six different players falling between three and 10 total points on the season.

Kyler Gordon started 14 games at cornerback, but his charting metrics were problematic; SIS has him with 11.1 yards allowed per target. Safety Jaquan Brisker came out much better, with just 6.2 yards allowed per target plus four sacks as a blitzer. Undrafted cornerback Jaylon Jones was also a contributor, starting four games and allowing 7.5 yards per target.

Fifth-round pick Braxton Jones started the entire season at left tackle and did about as well as you would expect for a fifth-round rookie, near the bottom of the league with a 3.6% blown block rate and 12 sacks allowed."

The Chicago Bears are in a far better place now.

Poles went from no picks in the top 38 last year to holding the #1 overall pick in 2023. He can turn that into even more picks if he decides to trade down in the coming months. It is a tremendous opportunity to add front-line talent to this roster. If Poles was able to find solid contributors with what he had last year, there is no telling how much better he might do this April. It is why so many Bears fans are excited. They feel this off-season could be the start of something special. Everything comes down to making the correct evaluations.

Previous GMs whiffed in such moments. Pace took Mitch Trubisky with the #2 pick in 2017. Jerry Angelo took Cedric Benson with the #4 pick in 2005. Those misses helped close what should've been championship windows. The Chicago Bears are at the opening once again. Poles can push them through. This is what he's been scheming for since he took over. That 2022 draft class was a sign he might finally be the one to change their fortunes. The only thing left is to prove it.