Official: Bears trade 1st ovr pick to Panthers for WR DJ Moore & multiple future 1st rounders

[Rusty Trombagent]

[BigDaddy]

Frankly, I am surprised at anyone thinking this was not a great trade. DJ Moore is better than a 1st rd pick. There is no guesswork. This guy has been catching passes from nobodies. We have to look at the big picture. I think he makes EVERYONE better. If he, Mooney and Claypool are on the field at the same time, this gives the offense some great options, couple that with what Fields can do with his feet and our running game and we are going to give teams a ton of trouble. Now, add some bonafide o line help and this offense looks formidable.

I predicted the trade with Carolina but considered Burns the player but I am not the least bit disappointed. From what I am hearing, no one thinks this was a bad move by Bears and no one thinks we got less than we should have gotten.

The Team who really lost out on this one is Indy. They lose their first and second choice in QBsafter Ballard has been blathering on about being committed to getting their QB. Now they have to worry about what AZ is going to do with their pick cuz if they trade to a QB hungry team, Indy is cooked. All I know is, we got what we needed, a number 1 WR and more picks.

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

I think I spent too much time on the mock draft simulators, thinking we'd end up with like 5 1st round picks and like 14 2nd rounders. This is a good trade. It slides the receiving corps into their correct positions; Moore is a #1, Mooney #2, and Claypool #3. I could see A LOT of sets this year where Claypool is the X, Mooney the Z, and Moore is torching the middle of the field from the slot.

[TheWorldBreaker]

I would be more despondent than the posters here lamenting the Bears got DJ Moore for Fields instead of another first rounder.

Picking a running back in the top 10 is a horrible mismanagement of draft capital. Especially, when you had the worst pass blocking line and worst pass rushing line in the entire NFL last. Not only that but one of the strengths of this draft class is the depth of the running back class.

Go after “blue” players in the trenches early and get another running back to add to the rotation later. You can’t fix both lines in free agency alone.

Yeah, what you're saying make sense. For me it depends on what DL talent is there at 9. I don't like the top OL guys. So if you can't get a DL guy you like, you can take Bijan (deep class maybe, but I think he's something special). Then you can use your ample capital to get back into the top of the 2nd to draft Schmitz at C. Good guard prospects in 2-mid rounds are plentiful. You draft a starting OG and C. Probably have to use FA for RT, but I think that won't be too expensive and you now have sorted the offensive side. You will have to spend on a DT and a DE.

I also think (and am probably just too excited to have Moore on the roster) that with Bijan, those WRs, Kmet, an improved line and Fields .. well your offense is going to be something. Fix DL in year 2 via draft.

When is the last time a team that drafted a special running back in the top 10 made it to the SuperBowl?

Ezekiel Elliott was an amazing prospect and performed well enough to get a big contract but he’s now a short yardage back because a younger mid round pick is now better than him.

Running backs age like milk relative to other positions, so it’s a poor investment, especially for a team that isn’t an elite running back away from being a contender.

Especially, if your safety is your best pass rusher again.

[cblaz11]

I’d rather trade back and take Gibbs..He might be better then Bijan.

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

I just saw a clip of the sports talk show SPEAK, and one of the hosts made a great, great point. And it speaks to the brilliance of this trade. You have now removed any excuses from the JF1 and whether or not he can throw the ball. You have a #1 in Moore, a #2 in Claypool, and a #3 in Mooney. That is a solid receiving corps. If you go through 2023 and Fields can't get it done as a passer, the Bears have two 1st round picks next year, and they can go and trade up to get a QB that can be who they need them to be. That being said, I'm still convinced that JF1 is going to put himself squarely in the MVP discussion next year as one of the top QB's in the league. Throwing for 4000 yards and running for another 1000. But the point is that Poles has set himself up brilliantly for this year and next.

[wab]

This trade feels better after I slept on it. Still would have preferred the higher 2nd round pick and I’m still warming up to DJ Moore, but I think it’s a good deal.

Hopefully the draft isn’t a let down.

[HisRoyalSweetness]

If 4 QBs get selected before the Bears pick then only 4 other players will be off the board. Will Anderson will certainly be one, but who knows who the other 3 will be? There would still be a lot of options for the Bears.

I think they're more likely to look for defensive line help that high rather than offensive line and one of Carter, Murphy or Wilson will almost certainly still be available.

[RichH55]

Yeah, what you're saying make sense. For me it depends on what DL talent is there at 9. I don't like the top OL guys. So if you can't get a DL guy you like, you can take Bijan (deep class maybe, but I think he's something special). Then you can use your ample capital to get back into the top of the 2nd to draft Schmitz at C. Good guard prospects in 2-mid rounds are plentiful. You draft a starting OG and C. Probably have to use FA for RT, but I think that won't be too expensive and you now have sorted the offensive side. You will have to spend on a DT and a DE.

I also think (and am probably just too excited to have Moore on the roster) that with Bijan, those WRs, Kmet, an improved line and Fields .. well your offense is going to be something. Fix DL in year 2 via draft.

When is the last time a team that drafted a special running back in the top 10 made it to the SuperBowl?

Ezekiel Elliott was an amazing prospect and performed well enough to get a big contract but he’s now a short yardage back because a younger mid round pick is now better than him.

Running backs age like milk relative to other positions, so it’s a poor investment, especially for a team that isn’t an elite running back away from being a contender.

Especially, if your safety is your best pass rusher again.

This is where Im at on HB

[RichH55]

Cooler - Did they just move a bunch of the 2022 base forward when they did the extension for Moore?

Basically. Which is very common in these year-early extensions. They were obviously making room for the QB moves they had made, so I'm sure that was a big part of it.

See you answered it here - Thank you

Yeah - that makes sense

Thanks again

[RichH55]

I think it's important to remember that it's unrealistic to think that Poles can fix EVERYTHING in just one year, as much as we'd all like it to be so. With that in mind I'm extremely happy with the Moore pickup and I'd also be just fine drafting Robinson at 9 (so long as the OL is addressed via either FA or draft THIS YEAR) for one simple reason: it takes more time for an offense to gel than a defensive line does.

Get the pieces for the offense together NOW so they have this year to build familiarity and chemistry. An offense of Fields, Robinson, Moore, Mooney, Claypool and Kmet with a SOLID OL would be absolutely formidable. Even with a crappy defense it would be possible to win games in shootouts once the O is firing on all cylinders.

Defense could be addressed mostly next year. The #1 pick we got from Carolina in the trade can be used to snag a top DT or EDGE. Anyone know what the DT / EDGE FA class looks like next year?

I don't think any team ever fixes "everything"

But to expect just the 1st Pick trade to fix everything - that was ALWAYS gonna be a letdown because its just not tied to reality

[thunderspirit]

If you think Moore has been catching passes in Carolina from mostly trash (he has), check out his QBs at Maryland. Woof.

Dude had 1033 of his team's 1940 passing yards (and 80 of their 175 receptions) in 2017.

[RichH55]

Im looking bad on 2022 FA - And note the caveats that its never super wise to depend on FA for team building and that the 2023 crop is merely Fine/Above Average as far as FA crops go (I was surprised - I expected MORE tags and more resignings to be honest)

But it should be noted that the 2023 crop (especially one you are factoring in Age) is just a much better crop than 2022

Just an incredible job by Poles in being patient and viewing this from the right mindset


2022 crop just for reference: https://www.nfl.com/news/top-101-nfl-fr ... -available

[RichH55]

If you think Moore has been catching passes in Carolina from mostly trash (he has), check out his QBs at Maryland. Woof.

Dude had 1033 of his team's 1940 passing yards (and 80 of their 175 receptions) in 2017.

Great call

[Hema2.0]

I just saw a clip of the sports talk show SPEAK, and one of the hosts made a great, great point. And it speaks to the brilliance of this trade. You have now removed any excuses from the JF1 and whether or not he can throw the ball. You have a #1 in Moore, a #2 in Claypool, and a #3 in Mooney. That is a solid receiving corps. If you go through 2023 and Fields can't get it done as a passer, the Bears have two 1st round picks next year, and they can go and trade up to get a QB that can be who they need them to be. That being said, I'm still convinced that JF1 is going to put himself squarely in the MVP discussion next year as one of the top QB's in the league. Throwing for 4000 yards and running for another 1000. But the point is that Poles has set himself up brilliantly for this year and next.

Not excited.
(And I was counseling modest expectations before this, too...)

I don't mind going down to 9 (or lower). But you gotta do better than that.
They only got ONE extra pick this year. And it's not even a high R2, it's a very late R2. The difference between, say, a 35 and 61 is HUGE.

R1 in 2024 is a nice piece, as Carolina may still suck then. But the R2 in 2025 is 2 years off.

DJ Moore's a nice receiver, but he isn't that valuable a pickup. I'm so sick of having this conversation over and over.
Trading for somebody under contract cheaply has value. Essentially, you're giving up draft capital in exchange for cap capital.
Trading for somebody under contract at market value isn't really helpful (unless they're the final piece of your championship push). You're giving up draft resource in order to pay the financial price that should be paid without any draft resource attached - ie, you're setting fire to your draft pick.
The contract savings on Moore isn't that much - and the Bears need draft capital far more than cap savings, anyway.

Just my opinion, but Poles needs to have zero question marks when it comes to Fields by this time next year. Getting a true #1 and beefing up the oline will eliminate all excuses for that not happening. If Fields balls out, we will have 2 #1's next year for roster building. If Fields craps the bed, we should be in decent position with 2 #1's to make something happen on the QB front. Either way, the WR corp and the Oline should be in good position moving forward .

You ever feel like your opinion just doesn't matter?

[otis]

I think I spent too much time on the mock draft simulators, thinking we'd end up with like 5 1st round picks and like 14 2nd rounders. This is a good trade. It slides the receiving corps into their correct positions; Moore is a #1, Mooney #2, and Claypool #3. I could see A LOT of sets this year where Claypool is the X, Mooney the Z, and Moore is torching the middle of the field from the slot.

are we worried that mooney won't be ready at the start of the season? or that he will be limited? he did have a knee wrecked. are there no concerns about him coming back?

[VA_Mountain_Bear]

I liked it yesterday, but one aspect I am liking even more for a team that is in total rebuild mode is this.

1 pick = 1 player in the 1st
Now that 1 pick = 5 total players ALL in the 1st or 2nd if we count DJ Moore as a worth a first - which I'd argue he is at minimum.
I mean fuuuck that is sweet guys to turn 1 player with 1st value into 3 and 2 more with 2nd value.
Of course we have to chose corrctly with those picks, but that is fine math for rebuilding!

To jump on the Bijan Robinson eval, I'd love it IF we aren't planning to resign Monty and 1. we sign McGlinchey or Mcgary to RT 2. We sign a C or LG 3. We are planning to use one of our 2nds for Oline like Schmitz 3. Further stretch b/c theylike Braxton, but if we signed Orlando B and let Braxton become the swing T
At that point we'd have one hell of a fierce run game to take pressure off of JF to do it, and create a real dilemna for DCs to figure out how to stop Moore-Mooney-Clay-Cmet and defend Robinson or Fields running it

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

I just saw a clip of the sports talk show SPEAK, and one of the hosts made a great, great point. And it speaks to the brilliance of this trade. You have now removed any excuses from the JF1 and whether or not he can throw the ball. You have a #1 in Moore, a #2 in Claypool, and a #3 in Mooney. That is a solid receiving corps. If you go through 2023 and Fields can't get it done as a passer, the Bears have two 1st round picks next year, and they can go and trade up to get a QB that can be who they need them to be. That being said, I'm still convinced that JF1 is going to put himself squarely in the MVP discussion next year as one of the top QB's in the league. Throwing for 4000 yards and running for another 1000. But the point is that Poles has set himself up brilliantly for this year and next.

Just my opinion, but Poles needs to have zero question marks when it comes to Fields by this time next year. Getting a true #1 and beefing up the oline will eliminate all excuses for that not happening. If Fields balls out, we will have 2 #1's next year for roster building. If Fields craps the bed, we should be in decent position with 2 #1's to make something happen on the QB front. Either way, the WR corp and the Oline should be in good position moving forward .

You ever feel like your opinion just doesn't matter?

Totally didn't see your post, I got that info from watching a clip of a sports talk show.

...and no, your opinion doesn't matter.

[The Cooler King]

Basically. Which is very common in these year-early extensions. They were obviously making room for the QB moves they had made, so I'm sure that was a big part of it.

See you answered it here - Thank you

Yeah - that makes sense

Thanks again

Yea I did just plug his contract back in to the internet archive and the full 19.5M that was reported was a signing bonus. So they are eating like $14m of that on the trade. So they effectively paid him ~ $20 for that one year, with 3/4 of it hitting the cap this year. But between Darnold and Baker they were basically paying premier QB money in 2022, that had to fit somehow.

Very efficient use of QB cap resources

[o-pus #40 in B major]

According to twitter, Paris Johnson is the odds on favorite at 9.

[IotaNet]

Here’s an interesting nugget. Wouldn’t this be something?

[Rusty Trombagent]

According to twitter, Paris Johnson is the odds on favorite at 9.

Consolation prize for Justin now that JSN is out of the equation. I could see that.

[crueltyabc]

Skaronski gets all the pub for being position versatile but Paris Johnson played RG for all of 2021 before switching to LT in 2022. He could absolutely be in the field week 1 even if the bears sign a RT in free agency. If Whitehair isn’t totally washed he could compete with both Johnson and Patrick for their spots. Or he can be cut and save some cap for next season

[Hema2.0]

Another interesting tidbit I found.....
"What’s more (no pun intended) is that Moore’s $20 million cap hit actually helps the Bears reach the salary cap floor for the 2023 season. This means they won’t need to shell out extra money on so-so players in free agency just to hit that number. It’s yet another bonus with this trade."

[The Cooler King]

Another interesting tidbit I found.....
"What’s more (no pun intended) is that Moore’s $20 million cap hit actually helps the Bears reach the salary cap floor for the 2023 season. This means they won’t need to shell out extra money on so-so players in free agency just to hit that number. It’s yet another bonus with this trade."

Eh, the drop from 1 to 9+61 offsets a lot of this (I assume they're talking about the cash minimum).

Net net, while it adds about 18.1M in cap hits it only adds to cash floor by about 9.8M

Considering there were rumors of adding a mid tier like Hardman, that's probably thr extent of changes this should drive in FA. Moore over Hardman-type and no other plans change.

[malk]

Pretty happy with this. We need to make the playoffs this year for Fields' development and Moore is both better than free agent options plus at under $17.5m per that's a decent contract for a young player who is established but still has upside.

Carolina's 2024 pick is likely to be a very good one as people have mentioned, a good hedge for if Fields does disappoint.

It did look a little shy at first but getting Moore for around $5m per less than his extension value is valuable in itself.

[dplank]

The more I think about it and greed sets in, the more I wish we’d have gotten their high 2nd instead of the low one. Pretty big talent drop there.

[IotaNet]

Well, the love for Poles and the trade are pretty much universal.

Here’s an excellent read from The Athletic (subscription required unfortunately): https://theathletic.com/4297113/2023/03 ... yan-poles/

[IE]

The more I think about it and greed sets in, the more I wish we’d have gotten their high 2nd instead of the low one. Pretty big talent drop there.

Situationally, it seems fine to me. That is right about where the Centers are coming off the board - and Poles should be able to grab one of the top 2 (Scmitz or Wypler, or Tippman - who I don't hear people talking about too much).

[Road]

I’m all in on the trade!

Now let’s get some road grader big bodies to shore up those lines!

It’s nice seeing a Bears GM acquiring draft capital instead of squandering it like they have for the last 3 decades.

Poles, Fields Moore Mooney!