Bears Mock Draft Monday: Justin Fields trade gifts Chicago another first-round pick
More news and rumors continue to come out regarding the Chicago Bears and what their plans will be for the 2024 NFL Draft. The Bears currently control the board by being in possession of the first and ninth overall picks in the draft and who's to say the front office won't land another Day 1 […]
More news and rumors continue to come out regarding the Chicago Bears and what their plans will be for the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Bears currently control the board by being in possession of the first and ninth overall picks in the draft and who's to say the front office won't land another Day 1 pick between now and April?
Following the latest rumors around the league, it's time for a new Bears mock draft. In this mock, I will have the Bears strong arm the Pittsburgh Steelers into trading their 20th overall pick in the first round in exchange for quarterback Justin Fields and a 2025 fourth round selection. With the added pick on the opening night, here's what the Bears' draft could potentially look like.
1st Overall Pick: Caleb Williams
Widely expected to be the number one pick in the draft and the heir to the Bears franchise, this pick of course remains the same after trading away Fields to the Steelers.
Caleb Williams is set to take over the reigns in Chicago and hopefully be the quarterback that finally leads the team to the promise land in the future. The Bears can't afford to make the same mistake twice and it's time to get their next signal-caller, whether the current players are on board with it or not.
9th Overall Pick: Malik Nabers
After taking Williams with the top selection in the draft, the Bears next order of business will be surrounding him with some top talent on offense. Enter Malik Nabers.
Nabers has been projected anywhere from the 5-9 range according to multiple mock drafts released over the last few weeks. In this scenario, he slides down the board and the Bears are quick to pick him up to pair with their rookie quarterback.
Nabers finished his 2023 campaign at LSU with 1,569 receiving yards while leading the entire FBS with 120.7 receiving yards per game. He also added a career-high 14 receiving touchdowns during the season. He's as polished as it gets and would easily be the top wide receiver in the class if it weren’t for Marvin Harrison Jr.
20th Overall Pick (via PIT): Jackson Powers-Johnson
If the Bears' front office wants to go all in on the offense in 2024, they'll need to triple down on that side of the ball in the first round. The center position is the biggest need on the team's offensive front and can easily be addressed with the top prospect in the class in Jackson Powers-Johnson with the pick acquired from the Steelers.
Powers-Johnson has experience at both center and guard but would be an immediate starter at center for the Bears. The All-Pac 12 selection had a standout 2023 season at Oregon and continued to impress during the 2024 Senior Bowl.
The late teens to early 20s seems like the early projection for Powers-Johnson's landing spot and the trade with the Steelers could pay off in a big way if the Bears can land the highly sought prospect.
75th Overall Pick: T'Vondre Sweat
The Bears will have multiple different options to consider in the third round, but I'm going to have the front office selecting defensive lineman T'Vondre Sweat, who could become an athletic freak in the rotation of the interior front under new defensive coordinator Eric Washington.
The 2023 Outland Trophy Award winner had a breakout senior year at Texas after finishing the season with 2.0 sacks, eight tackles for a loss, and seven QB hits. His efforts also earned first-team AP All-American honors following the season.
The Bears entire brass got a good look at Sweat during the Senior Bowl and will get another opportunity to really see his athletic ability during the NFL Combine later this month. During the week in Mobile, Sweat was ranked as the top defensive line prospect in attendance according to our own Travis May who highlighted his explosiveness and strength as being hard to stop.
4th Round Pick: Kalen King
The Bears could get an absolute steal with this selection by snagging an incredible prospect in the fourth round who was projected to land somewhere in the high second round early in the draft process. However, after a down season in 2023, Kalen King's buzz might be dying down and the Bears could jump in to take advantage.
Despite the down year, King was absolutely dominant in 2022 limiting opposing quarterbacks to a completion rate under 46% when targeted, according to May. In 2023, he was tasked with guarding more top wide receivers in the Big 10 which hampered his overall production in coverage.
With the Bears, King can take things slow while playing behind Jaylon Johnson (who will likely return on a franchise tag), Kyler Gordon, and Tyrique Stevenson at the position before fully getting back on track. If King is able to make that jump and return to his 2022 play, it'll also make things easier for the front office to potentially trade Johnson down the road if the two sides can’t agree to a long-term deal.
4th Round Pick: Cole Bishop
After recently cutting ties with veteran safety Eddie Jackson, the Bears will likely be in the market for a new and younger replacement to pair alongside Jaquan Brisker on the back end of the defense. That could come through free agency or through the draft in a prospect such as Cole Bishop.
Bishop is another player who participated during the Senior Bowl with multiple Bears' scouts and executives in attendance. Here's what May had to say about Bishop following the week down in Mobile:
"Cole Bishop showed great consistency over the last three years for Utah. An excellent run defender, but he also improved vastly in coverage last fall, showing he could stick with faster defenders downfield. He can lose physical battles to tight ends (as he did at Senior Bowl practices), but he could immediately slot in as a third safety for most NFL teams." – AtoZ Sports' Travis May
Bishop could easily be paired with a cheap free agent signing on a one-year deal and then eventually could be groomed to take over at the position.
5th Round Pick: Tahj Washington
With the team's last pick in the draft, I've have the Bears ending it the same way it began with an offensive play-maker from USC. The Bears could look to reunite Williams with his college wide receiver in Tahj Washington late in the draft.
Williams and Washington connected for 1,062 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns during the 2023 season. According to Pro Football Focus, he was also the only Power Five player with 1,000+ yards that didn’t have multiple drops.
That kind of consistency is exactly what the Bears' offense was missing in the passing game during the 2023 season. After a few of the Bears' positional coaches got a first-hand look at him during the East-West Shrine Bowl, perhaps he could be on the team's radar to pair with his former quarterback once again.
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