Another Chicago GM Helped Bears Craft The D.J. Moore Trade
Ryan Poles faced a problem. Traditional blockbuster trades in the NFL almost always involve purely draft picks for either a higher-placed pick or a player. It’s much rarer when both are involved. That was the case for the Chicago Bears. They wanted to unload the #1 overall pick. Most GMs would’ve focused solely on getting lots of picks back. Poles didn’t feel that way. He wanted picks, but he also knew his team needed more proven players on the roster to help win immediately. That was the genesis of the D.J. Moore discussions.
The Carolina Panthers were the most aggressive team in pursuit of the 1st pick. Poles clarified to them that if they wanted to get the deal done early, they would need to involve a player. This was somewhat uncharted territory for him. He wasn’t entirely sure how to approach it. So Poles did what he does best. He sought advice from people who would know. In this case, it was to a different sport. According to Adam Jahns and Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic, Chicago Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson gave him some vital tips on how to approach the situation.
Hockey has a long history of complicated deals like this.
Poles needed help — or maybe just some advice from a friend in town. So he called Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson.
“Really, hockey is the only one where you’re trading a combination of picks and players,” Poles said. “So I just was curious.”
He had plenty of questions about how the Blackhawks valued players against picks, how contracts and age played into the equation, etc. Davidson started laughing.
“He’s like, ‘It’s a challenge,’” Poles recalled.
Like the Blackhawks, Poles asked the Bears’ analytics team to work on “wins over expected,” an advanced measurement, to measure the potential impact of a trade acquisition.
“I had our guys working through different players,” Poles said. “Just to kind of see where we’re at.”
D.J. Moore was exactly what the Bears needed.
Quarterback Justin Fields lacked protection and weapons in 2022. If the Bears were going to find out if he is a true franchise quarterback, they had to start fixing those problems. Moore is a Pro Bowl-caliber player in his prime. He can be an immediate difference-maker in this offense, making life easier not only for Fields but fellow receivers Darnell Mooney and Chase Claypool. With defenses unable to focus on them, it will create far more one-on-one opportunities. Everything comes together, and that doesn’t even involve the three additional picks the Bears also got.
Davidson is no stranger to tough decisions. He just got done dealing the face of the Blackhawks franchise, Patrick Kane, to New York. Now his team holds the worst record in the NHL with high odds of landing the #1 overall pick. It’s fitting that he and Poles are in such similar situations. If D.J. Moore becomes a star in Chicago, Davidson should get credit for a minor assist. It’s cold that two GMs in the same city share a friendship like that.