The Chicago Bears have made their long-awaited trade of the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, trading spots with the Carolina Panthers at No. 9, according to multiple reports.
According to ESPN, the Panthers are sending the No. 9 overall pick, a late second-round pick (No. 61 overall), a 2024 first-round pick and a 2025 second-round pick, as well as star wide receiver DJ Moore , according to ESPN. .
With quarterback Justin Fields entering his third season after being acquired with the 11th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Chicago was expected to trade the pick to a QB-starved team in exchange for additional draft capital .
Carolina, coming off a 7-10 run with an emerging defense and running game, was the team that met the Bears’ asking price.
The Panthers now have the top pick for the second time in franchise history — Carolina drafted Auburn quarterback Cam Newton No. 1 in 2011 — and will likely choose from among the top QBs available.
Alabama’s Bryce Young was the first QB off the board in FOX Sports’ post-combine mock draft, but some evaluators also have Ohio State’s CJ Stroud as a potential top pick. from Florida Anthony Richardson and that of Kentucky Will Levis they also project as potential top 10 picks.
After Carolina at No. 1, the rest of the top five picks are owned by Houston at No. 2, Arizona at No. 3, Indianapolis at No. 4 and Seattle at No. 5.
The No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft has been traded 12 times before the draft since the NFL/AFL merger in 1967. It last happened in 2016, when the Titans traded the first pick to the Rams two weeks earlier of the draft. with the Rams moving up from the 15th pick to select quarterback Jared Goff.
This is a developing story.
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