The Bryce Young trade may go down as the single-greatest transaction in Chicago Bears history. Ryan Poles’ decision to ship the #1 overall pick in 2023 ended up landing his team D.J. Moore, Darnell Wright, Tyrique Stevenson, Tory Taylor, and, of course, Caleb Williams—four solid starters and a possible franchise quarterback. That doesn’t even include the 2nd round pick they still have coming next year. If Poles maintains his momentum, that trade alone could transform the Bears into a contender.
Nobody in their right mind would ever change the outcome except Panthers fans. However, information continues to leak about how different things could’ve been. Before the deal was finalized, it turns out another team made a hard push to secure that pick. Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog revealed details.
The Bryce Young trade was almost totally different.
Tennessee selected #11 overall in 2023. Any offer they were making for #1 had two involve a package centered around two future 1st round picks and maybe a player not named Jeffery Simmons. Remember, Poles made it clear he wanted a proven player back in any deal. Whatever the case, Chicago would’ve likely still ended up with Wright at #11 but wouldn’t have secured the 4th round pick in a trade with Philly that led to Taylor. If things play out as normal from there, the Bears would’ve landed the 7th pick this year.
That would’ve created a fascinating situation. Would they have stuck with Justin Fields since they no longer were high enough to get Williams, Jayden Daniels, or Drake Maye? Or would they have taken a swing on Michael Penix, J.J. McCarthy, or Bo Nix? Thankfully, they will never have to know. Poles played the Bryce Young trade perfectly, and it continues paying dividends. More benefits are on the way.
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