Report: Chicago Bears put Braxton Jones on notice, give hint at their draft plans with No. 9 pick

Per an interview with the NFL Network‘s Tom Pelissero, Eberflus said the Bears still needed to do a little more homework in the film room before they make their final decision at quarterback. He said he’s excited about where the Bears are after finishing the season strong (a loss to the Green Bay Packers?!?) and the ability to take two “blue [chip]” players at one and nine.

Because the Bears are drafting a rookie quarterback, what they do with the No. 9 pick will be scrutinized for years to come. The Houston Texans had two picks in the top ten last year, and they selected C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr. The result was a Wild Card win in head coach DeMeco Ryans’ first season in Houston. The Bears are heading into the 2024 season looking for their first playoff appearance under Poles and Eberflus.

Braxton Jones will be sweating out the month of April

Per video posted on X, Poles tipped his hands at where the Bears might go at No. 9.

“One team’s going to look at if the tackle position is the best to go after, the wide receivers the best, the defensive end is the best, and you use factual information to kind of spit that out and we’ll have a debate in terms of what’s more impactful for our football team, short term and long term,” Poles said.

Poles appears to be contemplating taking a left tackle with the No. 9 pick. Jones could be put in a position for an awkward draft nigh t like the one Larry Borom had last season when the Bears selected Darnell Wright in the first round with the No. 10 pick. Should the Bears select a left tackle, the incoming rookie would play behind two tackles taken in the top ten.

The Bears want to help their next quarterback

According to Herb Howard with It’s The Bigs, Eberflus reiterated where the Bears are at with the No. 9 pick. The Bears will take a player who either helps the quarterback (think OT, WR, fingers crossed TE Brock Bowers) or a player that affects the quarterback (DE or CB). Technically, any position on the football field affects the quarterback, but one would assume Eberflus means premium positions.

The Bears have flexibility with the No. 9 pick because of the strength of the roster in year three of the Poles regime. The roster isn’t completely fixed from the rebuild, but the Bears have quality players at all three levels on the defense. They have a solid foundation with Wright on the offense line. The Bears have D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen as wide receivers.

The Bears should be able to select the best player on the board with confidence about taking care of the Bears’ long-term interests instead of compromising on a player with a lower grade who better fits an area of need.