2023 was another lackluster season for the Chicago Bears, finishing at the bottom of the NFC North with a 7-10 record (a disappointment, but, it should be noted, improvement on 2022’s bottom of the barrel 3-14 showing). After trading away the No. 1 overall pick last season, the Bears have opted to keep that top spot in 2024, and will select first when the draft gets underway on Thursday, April 25th.
The Bears are widely expected use that first pick on USC quarterback Caleb Williams. That expectation solidified when Chicago traded QB Justin Fields, the 11th overall pick in 2021, to the Pittsburgh Steelers. In exchange, the Bears got a 2025 sixth-round pick that improves to a fourth-rounder if Fields plays 51 percent of offensive plays this season (Fields will be sharing the QB room with Russell Wilson, who arrived from Denver this offseason).
The Fields move silenced most of the chatter that the Bears would trade away the top pick again, or use it on a star receiver. But beyond the top overall pick, the team has additional capital to use, including the No. 9 overall pick and selections in the third and fourth rounds. After a productive free agency, the team is primed to make additional key moves via the draft to help pull a historic franchise out of the basement of the NFC North.
Wide receiver remains a key need for the Bears, who could look to add another skill player to join DJ Moore and Keenan Allen. Allen joined the Chicago roster via a trade with the Chargers in March after spending his entire 11-season career with the franchise. The Bears could also look to bolster their defensive line via the draft, ideally finding a complement to DE Montez Sweat.
Click here to see the entire 2024 NFL Draft order and keep reading to see who the Bears will take in the 2024 NFL Draft. Coverage of the latest news from around the NFL is available all year round from Pro Football Talk on Peacock and the NFL on NBC YouTube Channel.
Chicago Bears 2024 NFL Draft Picks
- Round 1: No. 1 (from CAR)- Caleb Williams, QB, USC
- Round 1: No. 9- Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
- Round 3: No. 75-Kiran Amegadjie, OT, Yale
- Round 4: No. 122 (from PHI)-Tory Taylor, P, Iowa
Check out 2024 NFL Draft draft picks for other teams in the NFC North:
Green Bay Packers 2024 NFL Draft picks
Detroit Lions 2024 NFL Draft picks
Minnesota Vikings 2024 NFL Draft picks
For the full slate of NFL Draft content from across NBC Sports, click here.
