The Carolina Panthers’ colossal failure in Bryce Young’s rookie season gave Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles an amazing gift. For the second consecutive draft, the Bears had the opportunity to take whatever quarterback they wanted.
The Chicago Bears did their due diligence at QB
While the Bears selected Caleb Williams at No. 1 this April, Poles reportedly showed serious interest in Oregon prospect Bo Nix.
Most draft analysts had Williams as the best quarterback in the 2024 draft, followed by Jayden Daniels. Drake Maye was considered the third-best quarterback. After Maye, Michael Penix Jr., J.J. McCarthy, and Nix were considered first-round talent, but their rankings differed on scout’s draft boards.
Nix was the last quarterback taken in the first round. The Denver Broncos selected Nix with the No. 12 pick. However, if the Bears weren’t so intrigued by Williams, Nix might have gone off the board a little earlier.
The Bears liked Bo Nix
According to Brad Biggs with the Chicago Tribune, the Bears had Nix higher than No. 6 on their draft board for a QB:
“Nix is super interesting, too, and I think he graded out pretty well for the Bears in the predraft process. Was it a tough choice between Williams and Nix? I’m not saying that at all. I’m just saying I bet if you stacked the top six quarterbacks in the draft class, the Bears’ list would have had Nix higher than No. 6.”
Caleb Williams was too valuable to the Bears
The Bears’ decision to take Williams over Nix shows how much faith Poles has in the USC product. Poles could have traded down from the No. 1 pick for significant draft capital to select Nix, essentially giving the Bears even more pieces to build around their rookie quarterback than they currently have for Williams. (And they have a lot.)
The Bears trust Williams’ will become a special player in the league. That’s worth more than anything the Bears could have traded for, even if they selected a solid starter in Nix.
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