National media outlet has Bears making big free agent splash after trading No. 1 pick
The Chicago Bears have the No. 9 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft after completing a trade with the Carolina Panthers
The Chicago Bears own the No. 9 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft after completing a trade with the Carolina Panthers on Friday afternoon.
Chicago also added an elite player on Friday, landing wide receiver DJ Moore in the deal with the Panthers.
Now that Chicago has moved the No. 1 pick, it will be a bit easier to project what they might do when free agency gets underway next week.
Immediately after the Bears' made the trade with Carolina, Pro Football Network put out some new free agent predictions.
And they have Chicago landing one of the top free agent offensive linemen available.
PFN's Arif Hasan has the Bears signing offensive tackle Orlando Brown in free agency.
Brown spent the last two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs after the franchise sent a first round pick to the Baltimore Ravens to acquire him in early 2021.
Landing Brown would likely mean that Braxton Jones would need to move to right tackle.
From Pro Football Network: Given Orlando Brown Jr.‘s explicit desire to play left tackle, there could be a bit of a conflict with Braxton Jones, who played surprisingly well at left tackle last year despite his status as a fifth-round rookie. But Jones has proven to be a quick study and impressed evaluators when at right tackle at the Senior Bowl, where he played both sides. Brown improves the line tremendously and also allows them to keep Teven Jenkins at guard, where he’s seemingly better. The Bears have the most cap space in the NFL and need to use it aggressively if they want to evaluate Justin Fields honestly.
Chicago might look for more of a true right tackle, but it could be hard to pass on Brown.
The only problem is that Brown might be a little expensive. Kansas City is only letting him get to free agency because they couldn't agree on an extension (he played on the franchise tag last season). The Bears have plenty of cap space, but that doesn't mean they should spend foolishly.
Watching Ryan Poles go to work next week when free agency starts should be fun for Bears fans. Buckle up, it could get wild.
