New Trade Partner Emerges For The Chicago Bears At #9

It isn't a secret at this point. After the Chicago Bears take Caleb Williams #1 overall on April 25th, people will wait to see if GM Ryan Poles decides to trade down from #9 overall or not. The Bears only have four picks in the entire draft. That would be his best chance to secure some extra capital. It comes down to finding a team that makes an offer they can be happy with. Bill Barnwell of ESPN explored this possibility and pinpointed a landing spot to watch. That is the New Orleans Saints at #14.

In his estimation, they are in dire need of offensive tackle help. The New York Jets are a threat to take one at #10 overall, so jumping in front of them at #9 makes plenty of sense. The tricky part is making the Bears an offer strong enough to move.

"Bears get: 1-14, 2-45, EDGE Payton Turner
Saints get: 1-9, 3-75

While we've rightfully focused plenty of attention on the Bears landing two top-10 picks in this draft, they don't have much in the coffers after those two early picks. After trading for Montez Sweat and Keenan Allen over the past few months, Chicago has one pick on Day 2 and one pick on Day 3. It could look to trade down from here to get an extra selection or two.

With Trevor Penning benched and Ryan Ramczyk's future uncertain because of an injury, the Saints would be moving up to get ahead of the Jets at No. 10 for an offensive tackle. The Bears would add another premium pick to the mix for their defense while taking a flier on Turner, a 2021 first-rounder who has played just 15 games over three seasons because of injuries."

Given the strength of this class, getting a 2nd round pick is an obvious goal for Poles. The interesting part is also receiving Turner. New Orleans took him 28th overall in 2021. Since then, he's only played 15 games. Across that time, he has three sacks, five QB hits, and 26 pressures. His size, length, and athleticism fit exactly what the Bears love. Is he worth the gamble?

The Chicago Bears are likely focused on acquiring picks.

While Turner is a tremendous talent who is still only 26, he doesn't feel like the type of player GM Ryan Poles would be interested in. He's big on medicals, as we've seen multiple times over the past few years. Taking on Turner would likely be seen as a waste of time from his perspective. He'd probably take just the 2nd round pick from New Orleans and be happy. That would give the Bears significantly more flexibility on day two of the draft. It comes down to how desperate the Saints are to get their preferred guy.

Like it or not, it also depends on who is available at #9. If somebody is on the board the Chicago Bears love, it may take a lot to convince them to move down. There is no question that Poles has certain favorites in this class. If one of them is on the board, he may wish to simply stay put and take the player. Still, the Saints are a legitimate team to watch. They have a history of moving up in the 1st round for prospects they like. This feels like a year for them to do that.