The Chicago Bears had a lot of things on their to-do list this offseason. General manager Ryan Poles was entering his second offseason on the job and it was time to start revamping the roster. Luckily for him, he had the assets to do so.
The Bears had the most cap space in the NFL by a wide margin and also owned the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Both were used to upgrade the talent on the roster and add more assets for the future.
Arguably the most important thing for Chicago to do this offseason was upgrade the weapons around quarterback Justin Fields. There were rumors Poles could move on from the 2021 first-round pick, but he committed to him and found his help in one fell swoop.
The Bears traded the No. 1 pick in the draft to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a package that included four draft picks. Not only did they cement their commitment to Fields, but they also received wide receiver D.J. Moore, providing the offense with the kind of bonafide No. 1 target they were lacking.
Fields recently revealed how he felt about the move during a press conference at Bears’ OTAs. Not surprisingly, it was one that he and the team were very excited about.
“Excited, of course. Woke up from a nap and saw that it happened. People were blowing up my phone like I just got traded. Everybody was excited.”
Moore’s addition is a big one for a passing game that was the least productive in the NFL in 2022. Some of that certainly falls upon Fields, who isn’t as far along in his development as a passer as he is as a ball carrier. But, the lack of support around him certainly didn’t help.
Not only were the Bears lacking weapons in the passing game, the offensive line wasn’t getting the job done either. Both areas were upgraded this offseason with Moore, tight end Robert Tonyan, offensive guard Nate Davis and offensive tackler Darnell Wright all being added via trade, free agent signing and drafting.
