Former Exec Gives Glowing Review Of Chicago Bears’ 2024 Draft
The Chicago Bears had to stick the landing. Everything they’d done over the past two years had led to this point. GM Ryan Poles overhauled the roster from top to bottom. He had good players emerging at several positions. Now, he held two 1st round picks in the 2024 draft. If he could nail those and maybe get some decent players with the other picks he had, the Bears would be in a position to challenge for the playoffs again. By most accounts, Poles did everything right. The combination of Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze alone is receiving universal praise.
Greg Gabriel worked in the NFL for 40 years. He was the Bears’ college scouting director for some of that time. He’s followed their rebuild closely for Windy City Gridiron. There was some uncertainty about what direction Poles was going. Gabriel felt the team should’ve kept Justin Fields and traded the #1 pick. However, that didn’t happen. After taking time to absorb and evaluate the latest draft class, he made a frank admission. The Bears knocked it out of the park.
“Every NFL Draft is important for each club, but this particular Draft was extremely important for the Chicago Bears. They had to get it right. Not only did they get it right, but I think they hit a home run with their picks.
Going into the Draft, the Bears’ needs were quarterback, wide receiver, depth for the offensive line, and a pass rusher. They not only filled all those needs but also picked up the best punter available in the last few Drafts.
The Bears went into the Draft with only four picks, two in the first round and a third and fourth-rounder. In order to get that extra pick, the Bears traded their fourth-round pick in 2025 to get a fifth-round pick yesterday. In the mid-rounds, that is an acceptable way of acquiring a draft pick that a club doesn’t have.”
The Chicago Bears made no obvious bad decision.
Every single pick made sense. According to almost every expert, Williams was the best quarterback in the draft. This wasn’t a Mitch Trubisky situation. Odunze had a case for being the second-best receiver in the draft, trailing only Marvin Harrison Jr., who most see as the best prospect to come out of college in maybe a decade. Amegdjie has size, length, power, and agility. The only thing holding him back from becoming a starting NFL tackle is polished technique. Tory Taylor was the most dominant punter in college football last year, setting multiple NCAA records. Booker only started one season in college, and despite that lack of experience still piled up eight sacks and 12 tackles for a loss.
Every pick met a key need. Every pick featured a talented player. There was never a sense the Chicago Bears strayed too far into the weeds for anybody. Guys either went where they were expected to or considerably later than expected. Poles found value in all three phases. It is hard not to call that a big win for the organization. The next step is giving them the necessary coaching and direction to reach their full potential. That falls at the feet of head coach Matt Eberflus.