Two Other Players Chicago Bears Almost Had In #1 Pick Trade Revealed

The Chicago Bears traded the #1 pick to the Carolina Panthers almost two weeks ago. GM Ryan Poles felt the need to strike while the iron was hot. The top QBs in the 2023 class performed beautifully at the scouting combine. He didn’t want to risk teams growing cold on them around pro day time. However, to make a trade happen before free agency, he made it clear a team would have to include a proven veteran player in the package. Carolina was the most aggressive in pursuit of the pick, so Poles sent them a list.

It included three player names on it. He would accept any one of them in the deal. Panthers GM Scott Fitterer was allowed to choose which. In the end, he went with wide receiver D.J. Moore. What created immediate curiosity was wondering who the other two names on the list were. Adam Hoge and Adam Jahns endeavored to find out. So they spoke with Panthers beat writer Joe Person of The Athletic on the Hoge & Jahns podcast. He has it on pretty good authority who those two other players were.

“I think Poles was interested in one of a few of their young, talented, highly-drafted guys. And that’s [Brian] Burns, Derrick Brown and D.J. Moore.”

The Chicago Bears recognized their needs.

All three players on the list would’ve plugged significant holes on the roster. Burns is one of the best young pass rushers in the NFL. He has 38 sacks in his first four seasons. Brown is probably among the more underrated defensive tackles in the league. While his sack numbers aren’t great (six in three years), he has 33 quarterback hits. He’s also one of the best interior run defenders in the league. Pro Football Focus rated him third-best in the league last season. The Bears’ run defense was atrocious. So the appeal was obvious.

It’s not a surprise Carolina ended up picking Moore. While the young receiver was outstanding for them, he would be slightly easier to replace than capable defensive linemen like Burns and Brown. Besides, the Panthers likely know they will need a strong defense to offset the early struggles of a rookie quarterback. Their decision is easy to understand. Not that the Chicago Bears are complaining. They knew they’d be getting a good player regardless of who the choice ended up being.