For the first time in 45 years, the Bears hold the No. 1 and No. 9 picks in the NFL Draft on April 25-27.
In 1979, they drafted defensive tackle Dan Hampton at No. 4 with a pick acquired in a trade with the Buccaneers, and defensive end Al Harris at No. 9.
As the draft approaches, much has been written and said about what the Bears plan to do with the No. 1 pick they obtained last year in a blockbuster trade with the Panthers. But they’re also enthusiastic about what the No. 9 pick will bring.
“Having that No. 9 pick is a really good spot to be in,” said coach Matt Eberflus. “It’s right at the top.” We’ll definitely have a ‘blue’ player there. What we’ve done in free agency allows us to be flexible and really take the best player, one who we believe suits us in that position.”
Last week at the NFL owners meetings in Orlando, general manager Ryan Poles told reporters that after he returned to Halas Hall, he and his team will discuss which position should be targeted at No. 9.
“I like the numbers in terms of the talented players that can get to nine,” Poles told ESPN. “When we get back, we’re going to do some exciting things, like break into teams. One team will discuss [why] the tackle position is the best to pursue, [why] the receiver is the best, [why] the defensive end is the best, and will use factual information to back up their claims—and we’ll have a debate about what’s more impactful for our football team in the short and long term.”
“We’ll look at, ‘Hey, who’s the best tackler? Who is the best receiver? Who is the best rusher? “Who is the best this or that?” Eberflus added. “It’ll be great to be able to break into that and get guys’ feedback. To have good communication, it must be honest and true, and you must be able to express your opinions.
Poles recognized that the Bears might trade down from No. 9 to get more than the four picks they currently have in the draft.
“For sure,” he said. “That will sort of play out. We’ll evaluate how the figures look, and that will determine how far we can go back if we chose to do so.”
In addition to their two first-round picks, the Bears have two selections in the third round (No. 75) and fourth round (No. 122). If Poles does not gain any picks, he will be fine without any selections in the final three rounds.
“I think it matches the draft,” Poles added. “A lot of males returned to school this year. I believe you will see a considerable drop off. Hopefully some guys make it through, but the way we’re set up in the draft this year actually matches up very well with how I believe it will play out.”
Poles chose 11 players in 2022 and 10 in 2023 in his first two rounds as general manager of the Chicago Bears.
“If we don’t move at all, that’s 25 picks in three years, which is over eight and some change [per year],” he went on to say. “I like where we’re at there on top of being set up next year to have a pretty good setup as well.”
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