Unexpected Team Pushing Hard For Chicago Bears' #1 Pick

It isn't a secret at this point. The Chicago Bears are deep into the process of trading the #1 overall pick. They have a strong market for it and plenty of leverage coming out of the scouting combine. GM Ryan Poles sounds confident he will get a deal done, and it will be at a price that could change the entire landscape of the organization. We're talking multiple 1st round picks over the next two years. This organization hasn't experienced something like that since the days of Jim Finks.

The only thing left unknown is which team will pay the price tag. Most agree the two hottest contenders are the Indianapolis Colts and Carolina Panthers. It makes sense. Both saw multiple failures in the veteran market. Both have impatient owners desperate for a solution at the position. It isn't hard to imagine their GMs being pressured to make a move for a QB they want. However, it sounds like another team has entered the fray. Poles told Peter King of NBC Sports that a team from further down than expected had been calling him.

According to the Football & Other F Words podcast, we may know who it is now.

Now this by itself is nothing to get excited about. Podcasts and radio hosts make statements like this a lot. They're not always accurate. Where it gets interesting is when Mike Herndon, who covers the Titans as a beat writer, confirms the rumors that they are working the phones, trying to move up. They apparently have eyes for Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud.

This isn't the first time the Chicago Bears were mentioned.

Those with a sharp memory will remember back in early February that Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog reported two teams outside the top five had already floated offers to Chicago. When people speculated it was probably Las Vegas at #7 or Carolina at #9, he swiftly corrected them. It was Tennessee. Then, just for good measure, he dropped another strong hint a few weeks later, stating the Titans were looking to make a big move.

It isn't a surprise Tennessee is doing this. They're stuck in the AFC, which is suddenly stacked with great quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Josh Allen. Now Trevor Lawrence is ascending as well, and he's in the Titans' division. Worse still, two other division rivals, the Texans and Colts, sit in the top four, well-positioned to get their own quarterbacks. If Tennessee isn't careful, they could be left in the dust entirely, forced to navigate an impossible gauntlet to reach the Super Bowl.

They can't let that stand. Jumping both Houston and Indy to #1 would be the ultimate power move. They don't have the draft ammunition to pull it off. However, they do have something the Chicago Bears would want. That is Jeffery Simmons. He is one of the most dominant interior defensive linemen in the NFL. He's only 26 and would perfectly fit their three-technique position. Packaging him with a 1st in 2024 and some additional picks might be what Poles was hoping for.