The first big trade of the offseason has happened. The Chicago Bears traded the no. 1 overall pick to the Carolina Panthers. The Bears-Panthers trade surprised many and it changes the landscape of the draft. Here are the winners and losers of the Bears-Panthers trade.
Bears GM Ryan Poles agreed to trade the No. 1 pick on Friday.Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Winners And Losers Of The Bears-Panthers Trade
Before we get to the list, let’s review what each team got in the trade. For the Panthers, this is easy. They get the no. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft. The Bears received a massive haul in return. They get the no. 9 overall pick and the no. 61 overall pick in this year’s draft. They also receive a 2024 first-round pick and a 2025 second-round pick. If that wasn’t enough, the Bears also received WR DJ Moore.
Winner: Chicago Bears
Let’s start with the most obvious winner in the Bears-Panthers trade. The Bears got a haul that helps a lot of issues with their roster. The first and extra second-round picks in this year’s draft will help the Bears infuse their roster with young talent. Getting next year’s first also should pay dividends as the Panthers could easily struggle this year. Having multiple first-round picks gives the Bears flexibility to do a lot of movement in next year’s draft if they so desire. The DJ Moore pickup is a homerun. He easily becomes WR1 and now the receiving corp of him, Chase Claypool, and Darnell Mooney look like a solid group. Huge win for the Bears.
Colts owner Jim Irsay and general manager Chris Ballard watch pregame warmups before a preseason game against the Chicago Bears at Lucas Oil Stadium on Aug. 24, 2019, in Indianapolis. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
Loser: Indianapolis Colts
The Colts cannot be happy about this. If no trades happened, the Colts would have likely taken the second quarterback off the board. The Bears and Cardinals are not looking for the quarterback and the Colts would pretty much have their choice. Now, the Colts could potentially be picking up the scraps of this quarterback class rather than getting their preferred player. Two quarterbacks will guaranteed be off the board and depending on what happens at no. 3, the Colts could be stuck with whatever is left. This was a team that many thought would trade with the Bears but apparently, they did not offer the type of package the Panthers did.
Winner: Arizona Cardinals
The price for the no. 3 overall pick just went up. If a team is looking to jump in front of the Colts or if the Colts want to guarantee the third quarterback off the board, they will have to do business with Arizona. The Cardinals will have all of the leverage in this situation. Usually, when a team has leverage, it can squeeze more assets out of the team. Arizona may be content staying at three and taking the best non-quarterback off the board. However, they may get an offer too good to refuse and they will have this trade to thank for that.
Loser: Houston Texans
In terms of winners and losers of this trade, the Texans might be the most neutral but I put them in the category of a slight loser. They probably had the best asset to trade with the Bears in the no. 2 overall pick. The Bears could have stayed and taken a player or traded back again to stockpile their draft pick war chest. Either they didn’t make an offer or their offer wasn’t strong enough. Now, they will not have their choice of quarterback, at least one will be gone. It could work out for them. The Panthers obviously aren’t trading out so they are locked into the no. 2 overall spot. The Panthers may have a different opinion about who is best for their team than the Texans. The Texans probably still get their guy but it’s a little more complicated now.
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Winner?: Carolina Panthers
It is so hard to judge any trade in any sport with draft picks. If the Panthers take a quarterback and he goes on to be a perennial top 5 quarterback in the league, no one will care how much they gave up. If the player they take is a complete bust, this will go down as a colossal failure. On the flip side, all of those picks they gave up could turn out to be busts as well. Or they could turn into All-Pro players. Do you see the dilemma? For now, I am giving the Panthers the benefit of the doubt that they can draft and develop their guy and have him be one of the best quarterbacks in the league.
Loser: Jalen Carter & Will Anderson
Neither of these players will be one of the top two picks thanks to the Bears-Panthers trade unless something insane happens. The no. 3 overall pick is in question depending on what the Cardinals decide to do. The Colts and Raiders are looking to possibly draft a quarterback. While each player will still be a top-10 pick, the payday structure for first-round rookies heavily depends on draft position. Each of these players will likely fall a couple of spots which will mean a slightly smaller contract to start out.
Those are my winners and losers of the Bears-Panthers trade. It will be interesting to see what the fallout from this trade will be and if any other teams try to make moves before April’s draft.
