Since Ryan Poles became the general manager of the Chicago Bears, he has selected 21 players across two NFL Drafts. Coming off a 7-10 season, this is Poles’ most important draft to date. The following trends will help Bears fans understand what type of prospects the Bears are looking for and how Poles will operate during the 2024 NFL Draft.
Trend 1: Character Issues
Poles passed on George Pickens and Jalen Carter because of character concerns or charges made known to the public. Back in February, Malik Nabers was arrested on Bourbon Street in New Orleans for carrying an illegal firearm, according to court records. Although the charges were dropped, some teams could still find this behavior concerning. Bears fans don’t want to hear this, but if Poles passed on a talent like Carter, there is a high chance he won’t select Nabers if given the opportunity.
Trend 2: Athletic Testing
– Poles has drafted five offensive linemen in his tenure in Chicago. Four of them have an arm length of at least 33 â…ť inches. The only offensive lineman that didn’t meet this threshold is Doug Kramer. This means that Chicago most likely has projected first-round picks Taliese Fuaga and Jordan Morgan lower on their board and listed as guards, not tackles. The arm length measurement also translates to the center position. Kramer had an arm length of just over 31 inches. The top centers in the 2024 NFL Draft all have arms similar to or longer than Kramer’s. Therefore, the Bears are still in the running for Jackson Powers-Johnson, Graham Barton, Zach Frazier, Andrew Raym, Hunter Nouzrad, Sedrick Van Pran, or Drake Nugent.
– Velus Jones Jr ran the forty-yard dash in 4.31 seconds, and Tyler Scott ran the forty-yard dash in 4.44 seconds. Although it’s a tiny sample size, Poles likes wide receivers that are very fast. This trend might rule out wide receiver prospects such as Johnny Wilson, Ja’Lynn Polk, and Brendan Rice.
Relative Atheltic Scores (RAS)
Dominique Robinson – 9.74
Kyler Gordon – 9.69
Darnell Wright – 9.68
Gervon Dexter – 9.62
Zacch Pickens – 9.22
Jaquan Brisker – 9.12
Zach Thomas – 8.97
Tyrique Stevenson – 8.93
Kendall Williamson – 8.70
Roschon Johnson – 8.67
Terell Smith – 8.67
Tyler Scott – 8.61
Doug Kramer – 8.48
Braxton Jones – 8.44
Noah Sewell – 8.38
Travis Bell – 8.25
Velus Jones – 7.11
Ja’Tyre Carter – 6.30
Trestan Ebner – 4.80
Elijah Hicks – athletic testing not available
Trenton GIll – athletic testing not available
– 28.57% of Poles’ draft picks have a RAS of over 9.00
– 76.19% of Poles’ draft picks have a RAS of over 8.00
Trend 3: Trades
Ryan Poles has made many trades since he arrived in Chicago. He has used his draft picks to acquire veteran players and impactful rookies.
Khalil Mack Trade (2022)
Los Angeles received: Khalil Mack
Chicago received: 2022 2nd round pick (48th overall) and 2023 6th round pick
Poles used the 48th pick on Jaquan Brisker. This trade worked out great for both teams. Brisker is now a staple in Chicago’s talented secondary with 209 tackles, five sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumbles recovered, and two interceptions. Although Mack is now 33, he has a combined 25 sacks in his two years as a Charger.
Draft Day Trade 1 (2022)
Texans received: 2022 5th-round pick (150th overall)
Houston selected Thomas Booker with this pick.
Chicago received: 2022 5th-round pick (166th overall) and 2022 7th-round pick (207)
The Bears eventually traded the 166th overall pick to the Bengals and used the 207th pick to select Doug Kramer.
Draft Day Trade 2 (2022)
Bengals received: 2022 5th-round pick (166th overall)
Cincinnati selected Tycen Anderson with this pick.
Bears received: 2022 5th-round pick (174th overall) and 2022 7th-round pick (226th overall)
The Bears selected Dominique Robinson and Ja’Tyre Carter with these picks.
Draft Day Trade 3 (2022)
Buffalo received: 2022 5th-round pick (148th overall)
The Bills chose Khalil Shakir with this pick.
Chicago received: 2022 5th-round pick (168th overall) and 2022 7th-round pick (203rd overall)
The Bears chose Braxton Jones with this pick. This trade worked out for both teams. The Bears drafted a starting-caliber left tackle, and the Bills drafted a slot wide receiver with 772 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Draft Day Trade 4 (2022)
Los Angeles received: 2023 6th-round pick
The Chargers selected Scott Matlock with this pick.
Chicago received: 2022 7th-round pick (254th overall) and 2022 7th-round pick (255th overall)
Those picks turned into Elijah Hicks and Trenton Gill. The 2023 sixth-round pick the Chargers received was from the trade that sent Mack to the Chargers.
Roquan Smith Trade (2022)
Baltimore received: Roquan Smith
Roquan Smith hasn’t missed a beat since he was shipped to Baltimore. Smith has amassed 158 tackles, 2.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and two interceptions in 25 games with the Ravens. The good news for Bears fans is that he has had zero impact in his three playoff games as a Raven. Smith will have an even bigger role this upcoming season because Patrick Queen left to join the Steelers.
Chicago received: A.J. Klein, 2023 2nd-round pick (53rd overall) and 2023 5th-round pick (148th overall)
The Bears used these picks on Gervon Dexter and Noah Sewell.
Klein played in only two games for the Bears and recorded no statistics. Dexter recorded 20 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and two passes defended as a rookie. Sewell accounted for nine tackles and one forced fumble as a rookie.
The First Chase Claypool Trade
Pittsburgh received: 2023 second-round pick (32nd overall pick)
The Steelers used the 32nd pick on Joey Porter Jr. As a rookie, Porter Jr contributed 43 tackles, ten passes defended, and one interception.
Chicago received: Chase Claypool
This is easily the worst trade that Ryan Poles has made. Claypool played in only ten games for the Bears, and his performances were highly lackluster. In total, Claypool caught 21 passes for 191 yards and one touchdown.
The DJ Moore Trade (2023)
Carolina received: 2023 1st-round pick (1st overall)
Chicago received: 2023 1st-round pick (9th overall), 2023 2nd-round pick (61st overall), 2024 1st round-pick (1st overall), 2025 2nd-round pick, DJ Moore
So far, the Bears turned this one pick into a star wide receiver, a franchise right tackle, a starting cornerback, and presumably, Caleb Williams. This trade could go down as the best trade in NFL history.
Draft Day Trade 6 (2023)
Philadelphia received: 2023 1st-round pick (9th overall)
The Eagles traded up one spot to draft Jalen Carter. Carter had 33 tackles, six sacks, two forced fumbles, and a fumble returned for a touchdown in his rookie year.
Chicago received: 2023 1st round pick (10th overall) and 2024 4th-round pick
With this pick, the Bears selected Darnell Wright as their franchise right tackle.
Draft Day Trade 7 (2023)
Jacksonville received: 2023 2nd-round pick (61st overall) and 2023 5th-round pick (136th overall)
The Jaguars selected Brenton Strange and Yasir Abdullar with these picks.
Chicago received: 2023 2nd-round pick (56th overall)
The Bears chose Tyrique Stevenson with this pick. This is the only time the Bears have traded up during a draft in Poles’ short tenure. As a rookie, Stevenson contributed 86 tackles, two forced fumbles, 16 passes defended, and four interceptions.
Draft Day Trade 8 (2023)
New Orleans received: 2023 4th-round pick (103rd overall)
The Saints used this pick on Nick Saldiveri. He only played 18 snaps as a rookie, according to Pro Football Focus.
Chicago received: 2023 4th-round pick (115th overall) and 2023 5th- round pick (165th overall)
The Bears used these picks to draft Roschon Johnson and Terell Smith. Johnson accounted for 352 rushing yards, two touchdowns, and 209 receiving yards last season. Smith contributed 49 tackles, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and six passes defended by Chicago’s fourth cornerback.
The Second Chase Claypool Trade
Miami received: Chase Claypool and a 2025 7th-round pick
Chicago received: 2025 6th-round pick
Claypool is now a free agent and is receiving interest from teams in the Canadian Football League.
The Montez Sweat Trade
Washington received: 2024 2nd-round pick (40th overall)
Chicago received: Montez Sweat
Sweat helped the Bears defense turn into a top-ten unit in the second half of the 2023-2024 regular season. He racked up 25 tackles, six sacks, one forced fumble, and nine passes defended in nine games for the Bears.
The Ryan Bates Trade
Buffalo received: 2024 5th-round pick (144th overall)
Chicago received: Ryan Bates
Poles originally went after Bates during his first offseason as the Bears’ general manager. According to PFF, Bates’ best zeason came in 2022, when he allowed only one sack on 945 snaps. The five-year veteran will serve as a backup center and guard.
The Keenan Allen Trade
Chargers received: 2024 4th-round pick (110th overall)
Chicago received: Keenan Allen
Poles traded a day-three pick for a six-time Pro Bowl wide receiver who is poised to help Chicago’s rookie quarterback.
The Justin Fields Trade
Steelers received: Justin Fields
Bears received: 2025 conditional 6th-round pick (can turn into a 2025 4th-round pick IF Fields plays 51% of the snaps)
The draft compensation the Bears received in exchange for Fields was surprisingly low. While many Bears fans were upset with the return Poles renegotiated for, the settlement at the time of the trade was reasonable. Kirk Cousins signed with the Atlanta Falcons, the Las Vegas Raiders signed Gardner Minshew, the Seattle Seahawks traded for Sam Howell, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers re-signed Baker Mayfield. Poles had to take a hit at trade Fields to prevent distractions before Caleb Williams’ Pro Day. There was never going to be a scenario where Fields and Williams would share a locker room.
Possible 2024 NFL Draft Trade Partners
One star player involved in recent trade talks is wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. Aiyuk is in the last year of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers. The Bears could trade the ninth overall pick for Aiyuk if the top three wide receivers are off the board. But if Aiyuk is traded during the draft, I doubt it’s to the Bears.
Since Poles became the general manager, he as done trades with the Chargers (three times), the Steelers (twice), the Bills (twice), the Commanders, the Bengals, the Panthers, the Jaguars, the Saints, the Dolphins, the Egales and the Ravens.
Expect the Bears to trade down from the ninth overall pick if Joe Alt, Rome Odunze, or Brock Bowers are not available. Poles could also trade down in the fourth round, or package the 75th pick to move up in the draft.
Trend 4: Amount of Picks
Poles loves to trade back and acquire more draft picks, giving him a better chance at drafting future starters. Even though the Bears only have four draft picks, don’t be surprised if Poles ends up with 6 to 8 total draft picks by the time the 2024 NFL Draft ends.
Trend 5: Position
Since Poles became a general manager, he hasn’t drafted a quarterback, or a tight end and has only selected one center. Poles is going to draft his quarterback this Thursday. So, three questions remain. Does Shane Waldron want a young tight end to learn behind Cole Kmet and Gerald Everett (Brock Bowers, please!)? Does Poles view Coleman Shelton as his long-term solution at the center position? How does Poles feel about pairing a rookie quarterback with a rookie center?
The Unkown: How will Poles handle prospects with injury concerns?
So far, Poles hasn’t had to avoid any high-end prospects with a history of injuries. That won’t be the case this year.
The biggest injury concern that Poles will have to navigate is edge rusher Laiatu Latu. Latu suffered a severe neck injury in 2020 that required surgery. Then, he retired from football. In 2021, Late was cleared by doctors, and he transferred to UCLA. Latu amassed 85 tackles, 23.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, one fumble recovered, and two interceptions in two collegiate seasons. Latu is the third-best edge rusher in this year’s draft. How Poles evaluates Latu will not solely depend on his tape but also on his medical records and verdict from the Chicago’s team doctors.
Poles likes to take risks when it comes to trades. Will he risk a first-round pick on a player with a background of significant medical issues? Hopefully not.
