Must Read: How the Texans Screwed the Bears Out of a Once-in-a-Lifetime Trade Haul
Allow me to preface this by saying I absolutely *LOVE* what Bears GM Ryan Poles did in trading the first pick of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Poles leveraged the height of the pre-draft QB hype movement into a deal that netted the Bears the 9th and 61st picks in this year’s draft, a first-rounder in 2024, a second-rounder in 2025, and stud receiver DJ Moore. It was a most impressive trade haul. One that exceeded our lofty expectations and those of NFL insiders across the league. Think back to the pre-trade chatter that Chicago wouldn’t get what it was asking for in a deal. We didn’t believe it either, but notable reporters were putting that thought out into the public. It was a wild time to be following the Bears.
And to think, it would’ve been even wilder had the Houston Texans not gotten cold feet.
Remember, Poles was open to the dream scenario of trading back twice. And it turns out, he was close to doing to doing so:
In exploring how the Panthers-Bears trade went down, Carolina reporter Darin Gantt dives deep into the process. The inside look is a tremendous read that has all sorts of behind-the-scenes details. It is the type of thing that gives you insight and perspective as to how much work goes into these trades. Don’t get me wrong. I know it is never as easy as tapping a few keys and punching a proposal into the PFF trade simulator. But there is a whole bunch of nuance that we can’t account for from the outside. Hence, my insistence in calling this a must-read.
However, if you’re the greedy type, then perhaps knowing that the Houston Texans mucked it up for the Bears and kept them from getting even more in trading out of the first pick might grind your gears. Because it was Houston’s indecisiveness that caused Poles from executing a double trade-back. As Gantt writes it, the Panthers and Bears were working out their own negotiations under the line of thinking in which Chicago was sending the second pick (not the first) to Carolina. The Bears didn’t have that pick. However, things were sounding like they were close to getting that selection from Houston, which would’ve set some things in motion.
“And after a solid week of working the phones, it appeared that Poles had made a pair of deals. The Bears were going to flip the first pick to the Texans for a significant haul which included a starting offensive player, and then were then going to send the second pick to the Panthers for another stockpile of help for the entire organization.”
“As the negotiations went on, the cost to go from No. 9 to No. 2 eventually seemed settled — this year’s second-round pick acquired from the 49ers (61st overall, as opposed to the Panthers’ own second, No. 39), next year’s first-rounder, and Moore.”
Ho. Lee. Cow.
The Bears really could’ve gotten the 9th, 12th, 61st, a 2024 first-rounder, DJ Moore, *AND* an offensive player from the Texans. Sigh. Even not knowing who Houston “starting offensive player” would’ve been, I’d have been over the moon with this return. And that is coming from someone who was riding a high
And, sure, that also cost them the opportunity at drafting Bryce Young. Whoopsiedoodle. But it also kept the Bears from totally maximizing their trade haul. For what it’s worth, the haul was still hefty. And Bears fans should be thankful that’s how the deal went down. But there’s a feeling of “what could’ve been” that I can’t shake. But hey, maybe a Baers-Texans trade will play out at some point later tonight.
