Bears GM seeks future first-round picks for No. 1 overall in 2023 draft
By the sound of it, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles plans to be aggressive in dealing the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL draft.
Poles has his eyes on first-round picks in the 2024 and 2025 NFL drafts in return for the No. 1 overall pick, according to Peter King’s Football Morning in America.
“I know I can get a ’24 one and a ’25 one,” Poles told King.
“You’re telling me for the next two years I’ll have two ones? That’s either four really good players, or if we’re cruising, we can still trade back.”
Poles has the NFL’s golden ticket, the No. 1 pick – especially after declaring Justin Fields will be Chicago’s quarterback of the future.
The Bears have the potential to shake up the NFL draft, especially after the NFL scouting combine last week where Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson may have improved his stock with his record-breaking testing results. Alabama’s Bryce Young and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud are also considered the top quarterbacks in the 2023 NFL draft.
King notes that NFL teams can trade can draft picks from 2023-25 when the new league year begins on March 15, and teams can trade picks for 2026 when the draft begins on April 27.
“No one’s gonna rush me,” Poles told King.
According to King, the Indianapolis Colts (at No. 4) and Carolina Panthers (at No. 9) are “aggressors” for the top pick.
Poles also told King there’s another interested team “that’s further back than what I thought” in the draft field.
“I’m blessed to be able to read people,” Poles said regarding the quarterback draft market. “I can feel it. There’s urgency out there. There’s pressure.”
And the Bears appear ready to cash in. “I believe in building something to sustain success for a long period of time,” Poles said.
“To me that’s gotta be through the draft. This is just a chance to load up this team up with a bunch of opportunity and flexibility to do that. It’s time for this organization. … Now, with this opportunity with the first pick, it feels like an opportunity to kind of heal some of the things that happened before and become a really good team. Everything feels right.”