The NFL Draft is always a huge moment for any franchise, whether it's a team that's rebuilding, contending, or looking for one last piece to complete the Super Bowl-winning puzzle. It's an opportunity for any franchise to patch up holes in its roster and bolster its strengths even further. And for a team like the Chicago Bears, who finished with just three wins last season, the outcome of the 2023 NFL Draft could prove to be a watershed moment for a team that last won a Super Bowl in 1985.

Thus, it's no surprise that Bears general manager Ryan Poles is emphasizing the importance of building through the draft; after nabbing the first overall selection in the upcoming draft, what the Bears decide to do with that selection would definitely go a long way towards dictating their future led by quarterback Justin Fields.

“I believe in building something to sustain success for a long period of time. To me that’s gotta be through the draft. This is just a chance to load up this team up with a bunch of opportunity and flexibility to do that,” Poles said, per Peter King's Football Morning in America column from NBC Sports' Pro Football Talk.

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Bears GM Ryan Poles also stressed the importance of spearheading a franchise-wide 180-degree turn especially with new franchise infrastructure coming to usher in what he hopes to be a new era for the struggling franchise.

“It’s time for this organization. The [practice] facility and offices were just built. The new president [Kevin Warren] comes in, and we think in the same innovative way, I think. We’re in position to have a new stadium. Now, with this opportunity with the first pick, it feels like an opportunity to kind of heal some of the things that happened before and become a really good team. Everything feels right,” Poles added.

Many expect that the Bears would decide to trade away the first overall pick for a plethora of assets that would help them reach their goal of future contention. Bears fans will be hoping that quarterback Justin Fields make a humongous leap in 2023, lest they regret passing up on blue-chip QB prospects such as Bryce Young and CJ Stroud.