Every year, NFL teams battle it out from September to February to be the team to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. Despite the battle to win the Super Bowl, some teams have their eyes pointed elsewhere at the incoming NFL talent in the draft. The NFL regular season has finally concluded and a handful of teams look to own the first overall pick.
As of this very moment, the Chicago Bears are the owner of the number one overall pick sporting a 3-14 record, just nearly edging out the 3-13-1 Houston Texans. In order to secure the number one pick they needed to lose to the Vikings, and have the Texans upset the Colts. The Texans managed to pull out a win by converting a 4th and 20 hail mary and converting the 2-point conversion to secure the win 32-31, which likely played a role in Lovie Smith losing his job.
The three teams I think are most likely to end up with the number one pick are The Colts, The Bears, and The Raiders. Usually, the first overall pick is an untouchable trade piece, the reason why I don’t think the Bears value the pick that highly is the lack of a need for a quarterback. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Justin Fields and do not think that highly of him, but that being said, Ryan Poles (The Bear's general manager) has said he’d “have to be blown away” to select a quarterback first overall pick. Although I have little confidence in Fields it’d be unfair to move on considering the severe lack of help Fields has on the roster. Adding a new quarterback wouldn’t magically solve their mediocre offensive line and their pitiful receiving core.
I think the most likely trade partner with the Bears is the Colts, The Colts have employed what some have called “the rent a QB system,” The Colts pick up some aging veteran quarterback and pray his skills of the past magically reappear, which has not worked in the slightest. I think the Colts move up to the one slot and take Bryce Young, a young, talented, and cerebral quarterback. The Colts also have the two things required to trade up, draft capital, and they’re outside of The Bears division. With this move suddenly the Colts pair a quarterback with a high ceiling with a team with one of the best running backs in football, a solid enough receiving group, and a solid offensive line.
Another team poised to make an offer to the Bears for the first overall selection would be the Raiders. The Raiders also fill in the trade-up criteria, they have 9 picks in 2023 and don’t reside in the NFC. The Raiders just recently parted ways with veteran quarterback Derek Carr, which puts a gaping hole in the centerpiece of their roster. The Raiders have a talented roster, most notably Davante Adams. Dropping Bryce Young into an offense where he has Davante Adams, Hunter Renfrow, and Darren Waller gives Young ample opportunity to succeed.