Clearly, this was general manager Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears' plan all along.
Chicago beat the Carolina Panthers 16-13 on Thursday night football, moving to 3-7 on the season behind a respectable effort from undrafted rookie quarterback Tyson Bagent and solid performance from the defense. The Bears, obviously, still have no realistic shot at making the playoffs this season, three games behind the Minnesota Vikings in the loss column for the final NFC wild card berth with just seven games left to play.
But don't worry, Chicago fans. The Bears' Thursday win over the lowly Panthers only increased their chances at landing the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft despite them leaving Soldier Field with a rare victory. Why? Chicago owns Carolina's first-round pick in April after the blockbuster offseason trade that landed DJ Moore in the Windy City and allowed the Panthers to select struggling rookie quarterback Bryce Young first overall in last year's draft.
The Bears' chances of getting the top pick this year? A whopping 42% following Thursday night's result, according to ESPN.
Win-win!
Poles and Chicago's front office, of course, never expected to be in contention to land the top overall selection with their own draft pick. Justin Fields was supposed to cement himself as the Bears' franchise quarterback this season, building off his eye-opening finish 2022. Instead, his ugly early-season play and subsequent injury has merely been a part of Chicago's widespread dysfunction in 2023, affording the team an outside chance to get the first two picks in the 2024 draft.
Caleb Williams or Drake Maye sure would look good slinging the ball in a Bears uniform next season. What would look even better? Either superstar college signal-caller throwing to Marvin Harrison Jr. during their rookie seasons.
Breathe easy, Chicago fans. As long as neither the Bears nor the Panthers go on some random late-season winning streak, the odds are increasingly high your team will have a pair of top-five draft picks come April—and potentially choose first overall.