The NFL trade deadline is just under three weeks away on November 4th. Coming into this month, nobody expected the Chicago Bears to be active during it unless they planned to unload some of their more pricey veterans. However, things have changed. Their 0-2 start has transformed into a 3-2 record after three consecutive victories. Suddenly, they look like a team that might have enough to compete for a playoff spot. They have a winnable stretch over the next four games as well. It is one of those situations where another push via trade might be warranted. What nobody can say for sure is whether GM Ryan Poles will do it.
As always, the deadline is driven by who is available and at what price. If other teams are demanding exorbitant fees for certain players, the Bears won't move. Still, Poles has shown he's not afraid to be aggressive up to a point. The trick is remembering how he operates. When you look at the moves Poles made at the deadline in the past, one trend sticks out. He tends to target organizations with uncertainty at the top.
2022: Trades for Chase Claypool
- Steelers were in a transition period from GM Kevin Colbert to new GM Omar Khan
2023: Trades for Montez Sweat
- New owner Josh Harris had just bought Washington and most expected he would clean house
Ryan Poles will circle the teams with serious problems up top.
In this case, he might be in luck. By all accounts, the Miami Dolphins are dangling over a precipice. It's been rumored and speculated for the past month that both GM Chris Grier and head coach Mike McDaniels could be out if the team doesn't reverse its fortunes soon. The roster is not in a good way, and several notable names are believed to be potentially available, including pass rushers Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb. Tennessee already fired head coach Brian Callahan. New GM Mike Borgonzi has a roster badly in need of an overhaul. For that, he needs draft picks. Lastly, you have the New York Jets, who could be one-and-done with head coach Aaron Glenn and have mercurial owner Woody Johnson.
This isn't a case where most of the selling teams are relatively stable at the top. There is a lot of uncertainty in those organizations, which Ryan Poles has often loved taking advantage of. Everything depends on what the asking price will be for any players the Bears might be interested in.
