Former Exec Reveals What He's Hearing Chicago Bears Likely Do With 9th Pick

The Chicago Bears are locked into Caleb Williams for the #1 overall pick. GM Ryan Poles confirmed that in his recent interview with the Chicago Tribune. Fans want to know who the team might pair him with in the 1st round. They also hold the #9 pick, a spot with a long history of producing excellent players. Brian Urlacher came to Chicago in 2000. Leonard Floyd became a great player despite never reaching his full potential with the organization. The odds are favorable Poles will get a talented prospect at that spot.

Looking around the media circuit, most draft experts believe they will take the best offensive player on the board. Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze is the hottest name. Notre Dame tackle Joe Alt, Alabama tackle JC Latham, and Georgia tight end Brock Bowers are also possibilities. However, former scouting director Greg Gabriel doesn't think that scenario plays out. He explained on Windy City Gridiron that he's hearing the Bears have a far different plan in mind.

It doesn't involve staying at the 9th pick.

In talking to some decision makers around the League the last few days, the general feeling is that the Bears want to trade down from nine to obtain more draft picks in this Draft. As of now, the Bears have only four picks: two first-rounders, a third-rounder, and a pick in the fourth round.

While this isn't a deep draft as far as depth in the late rounds, the first four to five rounds are very good and the second round is extremely strong. Knowing that the best thing that Poles can do for the franchise is to get as many quality players as he can...

...How far down could the Bears go? A lot of that will be determined by what the Bears Draft Board looks like. Where is the drop-off in talent? Since no two draft boards are alike, the only people who know that answer are the Bears' decision-makers.

In order to obtain a second-round pick in a trade down, the Bears would have to move at least eight slots. That would put them at 17, and 17 might be below the line for a value player. To obtain a third-round pick, it would be much easier as they would only have to move down about four slots.

The path always seemed obvious for the Chicago Bears.

They only have four picks in this draft. While Poles did say he is comfortable with the idea of it staying that way, history says that is not the truth. He had 21 picks through his first two drafts. There is no evidence suggesting he would be happy with so few in a draft many feel has lots of quality talent. Smart money says he hopes to procure at least two more selections later in the draft. Kansas City never had fewer than six during his time there. That seems like the line he hopes to get to. His best chance to do it is by moving down from #9.

As always, finding a dance partner is the hardest part. There is no guarantee that many teams will be interested in moving up. The right player must be available for a deal to work. It is a safe assumption that the Chicago Bears will need either a quarterback or one of the top three wide receivers to be available for somebody to make an aggressive move up. Poles likely has already done preliminary talks with teams, letting them know the green light is ready if their guy is still on the board.

If it unfolds this way, things could get exciting.