Insider Reveals What Chicago Bears Need For "Dream" #1 Pick Trade

The Chicago Bears won't reveal what they plan to do with the #1 overall pick until it happens. They'll either use on the best player on their draft board, or they'll trade it. Right now, most people believe GM Ryan Poles will trade it. However, that isn't easy. If it were, the pick would've been moved more than only two times in the past two decades. The cost to acquire the top pick in the draft is high, as it should be. The challenge is finding a team willing to meet the price. It would be irresponsible of Poles to give the pick up for pennies.

The goal is obvious. Find a way to maximize the value and sell the spot for a large package. There are several variables involved in this. Chicago will need one of the quarterbacks in this 2023 draft class to make a great impression on QB-needy teams picking in the top 10. If one or two falls in love, that will heat up the market for #1 overall. However, Jeff Darlington of ESPN thinks there is an easier path for the Bears to get what they want. All they have to do is fan the rivalry between Houston at #2 and Indianapolis at #4.

The Chicago Bears need one thing to make that happen.

They need the Texans and Colts to like the same quarterback. It doesn't matter if it's Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, or Will Levis. If Poles can make it seem like both teams are zeroing in on the same QB, the bidding war will start. GMs Nick Caserio and Chris Ballard can't afford to let a QB they view as a potential franchise guy land in the hands of a sworn enemy. What Darlington says is true. That rivalry is the catalyst for any market the Bears hope to build if they wish to trade the pick.

There is a strong possibility some clarity on this subject will arrive in less than two weeks. The scouting combine approaches. It is often where teams start having real conversations about free agency and the draft. Don't be surprised if rumors start surfacing about the quarterback market. How Young, Stroud, and Levis perform will help bring clarity as well. The Chicago Bears are playing a careful game of espionage. Planting a few seeds of doubt in the Houston and Indy camps could lead to big results a month from now.