Saquan Barkley wheel and deal?

[Mikefive]

In April, Saquan Barkley has a DUI and twitter is abuzz. NFL GMs now have to reconcile the supreme talent against the risk. GM's talk as the draft approaches and Ryan Pace is no exception, having discussions with many GMs about many things.

The draft begins and the following 7 players have been selected (in no particular order)...
Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, Baker Mayfield, Bradley Chubb, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Quenton Nelson

The Bears are on the clock and Barkley's DUI has clearly scared off some teams. However since the DUI, Ryan Pace did have a clandestine sandwich with Barkley in a hole in the wall restaurant in Nowheresville, Pennsylvania and was reasonably satisfied that the player just made an unfortunate mistake that won't happen again.

As the clock winds down on pick 8, Roger Goodell steps up and announces, "with the 8th pick in the 2018 NFL draft, the Chicago Bears select, Saquan Barkley, RB Penn State." The crowd gasps, the entire city of Chicago with them. Goodell continues, "and the New York Giants have just traded the 34th pick in the NFL Draft to the Chicago Bears for RB Jordan Howard."

What do you think of that?

[Rusty Trombagent]

There's a train packed with explosives heading straight for the white house. Barron Trump is playing in the front yard, oblivious. The braking system has been disabled and the only person who knows how to stop the train is Saquon Barkley, but he's sworn allegiance to ISIS.

This of course causes his draft stock to plummet.

He's there at pick eight. Do the Bears draft him with the intent of waterboarding him until he gives up the way to stop the runaway train?

[Mikefive]

There's a train packed with explosives heading straight for the white house. Barron Trump is playing in the front yard, oblivious. The braking system has been disabled and the only person who knows how to stop the train is Saquon Barkley, but he's sworn allegiance to ISIS.

This of course causes his draft stock to plummet.

He's there at pick eight. Do the Bears draft him with the intent of waterboarding him until he gives up the way to stop the runaway train?

[Mikefive]

OK, so 13 people have looked at this and not one has an opinion? I feel like I just went about it the wrong way by making an effort to be entertaining. So I'll try a different approach...

Saquan Barkley falls to 8 and the Bears take him. At the same time, they trade Jordan Howard to the Giants for their R2 selection, pick 34. The deal makes sense for the Giants because they could really use a good, young RB and Howard's style fits what the Giants have historically done in the run game. And the price is pretty fair value. Furthermore, it fits the Bears, since Barkley is a rare talent who will be a productive receiver out of the backfield, which Nagy would prefer over the inconsistent hands of Howard.

So we end up with Barkley along with picks 34 and 38 in the first 2 rounds.

Would you do that? Good deal? Bad deal?

[UOK]

Barkley won't be there at 8 is pretty much my only opinion. The only way he falls that far is if video leaks of him beating up a woman or doing hard drugs.

Should he plausibly be doing one of these things (to satisfy your hypothetical situation), I'd say the Bears would not draft him based on character concerns. He'd go in the top 15, ala Tunsil.

[DaSuperfan]

I mean, I started a thread about this scenario back in February - the general consensus was that there wasn't a real need to upgrade the RB position - therefore most people were not in favor of it. Although my scenario involved trading RB for a WR - trading for a draft pick makes more sense. Just don't know if anyone gives up a R2 selection for him.

[WagonForce]

First of all Mikefive, thanks for trying to drum up some discussion. I personally enjoy thinking over different hypothetical draft scenarios.

I'll say this much, I think it's a bad deal, and here's why:

I think a move like this would be discounting an important aspect of building a team in professional football. Football careers are short. In their (generally) short time in the league, players are doing their best to get compensated for the tremendous amount of work they have put in to rise to the highest level of the game, and they are doing it today with the near certain knowledge that they are at considerable risk of suffering long term consequences to their mental and physical health. This is not an environment that is conducive to putting the team above one's own desires, and that is something that management and coaching deal with as they undertake the challenge of building a group that is collectively willing to sacrifice for a shared goal.

Look at this article that talks about Matt Nagy and making his first impressions on the players: Tribune Article

Relevant bit:

Matt Nagy eager to leave his imprint on Bears: 'They're going to understand why it's so important for them to put on the Bears uniform'

When you make a move like the one suggested in this scenario, you're communicating that a player like Jordan Howard, who has performed very well for the Bears, and by all accounts is the kind of hard working, leads by example type of player that you would like to fill out every spot on your roster with, is expendable.

Jordan Howard has some problems catching the ball, and it appears this could become an even greater liability in the new scheme the Bears will be installing. Saquon Barkley also appears to be a potential generational talent at the RB position, and it would be an incredible stroke of luck for the Bears to have him be still on the board at #8 (barring a situation like the one UOK describes where something surfaces that destroys Barkely's draft stock). All that being said, I still don't think you can take him and then ship out Howard.

If Barkley somehow fell to the Bears at #8, I think there are going to be a number of options to trade down that could lead to a bounty of picks. If I'm Ryan Pace in that situation, I take the bounty and transform that good luck into talent at a number of other positions. If for some reason the offers to trade down weren't compelling, I think I draft Barkley and keep Howard despite the issue of only having so many snaps to go around.

TLDR

Bad move because it sends the wrong message to your players. I would trade down, and barring that, take Barkely and have an embarrassment of riches at RB.

[cblaz11]

I'd take someone else at 8, trade Howard and take a RB that fits our scheme better with one of our 2nd rd picks. Preferably the kid from USC.

So we walk away with...

1. Q Nelson
2. Lorenzo Carter
3, Ronald Jones

[Moriarty]

I'm skeptical you can get a 34 for Howard, but if you do and Barkley is totally clean outside of the hypothetical DUI -

Definitely on board with taking Barkley and making the deal.

[southdakbearfan]

If, and I do say if because as others have said it would be highly unlikely he would be there, why would you not try to get 2, 3 or 4 extra picks out of that #8?

I sure would jump at a small move back in the first for a combination of picks in the 2-4th rounds when you already have a young, probowl running back and a great change of pace guy behind him. The possibility of solidifying multiple positions like the o-line, LB and others could really set a team up for a long term run at greatness.

[The Marshall Plan]

In April, Saquan Barkley has a DUI and twitter is abuzz. NFL GMs now have to reconcile the supreme talent against the risk. GM's talk as the draft approaches and Ryan Pace is no exception, having discussions with many GMs about many things.

The draft begins and the following 7 players have been selected (in no particular order)...
Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, Baker Mayfield, Bradley Chubb, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Quenton Nelson

The Bears are on the clock and Barkley's DUI has clearly scared off some teams. However since the DUI, Ryan Pace did have a clandestine sandwich with Barkley in a hole in the wall restaurant in Nowheresville, Pennsylvania and was reasonably satisfied that the player just made an unfortunate mistake that won't happen again.

As the clock winds down on pick 8, Roger Goodell steps up and announces, "with the 8th pick in the 2018 NFL draft, the Chicago Bears select, Saquan Barkley, RB Penn State." The crowd gasps, the entire city of Chicago with them. Goodell continues, "and the New York Giants have just traded the 34th pick in the NFL Draft to the Chicago Bears for RB Jordan Howard."

What do you think of that?

I would take Barkley and would not trade Jordan Howard. You can extend the quality years of both of their careers by platooning them in different situations. If a situation arrives where Barkley is just Tomlinson 2.0 then later on down the road you can trade Howard, but otherwise no. The real loser in that situation is Cohen because why give him touches when you've got Barkley? But Cohen could still be used as a situational receiver, probably RB sometimes and returning kicks.

[EricTighe]

If Barkley is as good as advertised then trade the pick. RB's are not easy to draft. (My opinion since he is not my number one guy)

But if he is Pace's number one guy in the draft then by all means take him and figure out the rest later. Problem is for Nagy to figure out.