Bears-Panthers trade grades: Chicago steals D.J. Moore in NFL Draft haul; Carolina gives up a ton for QB at No. 1
As expected, the Bears traded the coveted #1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft for a massive return. The Panthers will now be first on the clock on April 27 after striking a blockbuster deal to step up.
As Chicago sheds top pick, it regains four picks from Carolina, including slipping to 9th overall this year. The Bears also score a runner-up in 2023 (61st overall) — replacing the one they sent at the close for Chase Claypool — as well as a first-place finisher in 2024 and a runner-up in 2025.
The other part of the Bears’ compensation is huge – wide receiver DJ Moore. Moore gives third-year quarterback Justin Fields a much-needed veteran No. 1 to relieve his high ceiling. While the Bears continue to roll with Fields as the franchise QB, the Panthers will no doubt pick one of their own now.
Here’s how Sporting News rates the 2023 NFL Draft Blockbuster:
MORE: Breaking down the Panthers’ best options for the No. 1 overall pick
Bears-Panthers trade grades
get bears:
- WR DJ Moore
- 2023 First Round Draft Pick (No. 9 Overall)
- 2023 second-round draft pick (No. 61 overall)
- 2024 first-round draft pick
- 2025 second-round draft pick
Get Panthers:
- 2023 First Round Draft Pick (#1 Overall)
Bear grade: A+
The Bears took advantage of being the league’s worst team for records while already having a promising young QB in his rookie contract. GM Ryan Poles got an offer he couldn’t refuse to simply drop eight spots and get the kind of offensive or defensive perspective his team needed most anyway.
Chicago somehow doubled the first and second rounds and got a lot more – in Moore. Moore, a reliable routerunner with big-play moxie, will immediately serve as the Bears’ top wide receiver for Fields. He makes Darnell Mooney a dangerous No. 2. Along with ex-Steeler Chase Claypool in the big slot role and Cole Kmet in the tight end, the Bears’ primary passing game weapons suddenly look a whole lot better.
The Bears can now focus primarily on the front holes to either improve their pass protection on fields or rebuild their edge pass rush. No. 9 will still allow them to do this with an elite talent.
Chicago also has a clear direction for what to do in NFL Free Agency, where the organization sits on a slew of salary caps even with Moore added into the mix. On top of that, the timing was ideal for the bears too.
MORE: A look at the Bears’ draft pick stash after the Panthers’ trade
Panther grade: B
The Panthers gave up a lot to jump three teams in particular — the Texans at No. 2 overall, the Colts at No. 4 overall, and the Raiders at No. 7 overall. Those were the teams most interested in making a QB in the top 8 picks.
While there are four QBs worthy of being in the top 10, the Panthers couldn’t afford to let another team make the Bears’ pick or otherwise out of the mix for Alabama’s Bryce Young, CJ Stroud from the state of Ohio and Anthony Richardson from Florida or Will Levis from Kentucky.
Given how much GM Scott Fitterer has given up on the Bears — including Moore who would have helped a rookie QB — the Panthers need to make the right choice for new offensive head coach Frank Reich. Based on the type of system Reich ran and considering offensive coordinator Thomas Browns’ history with Sean McVay and the Rams, it would suggest they target the most polished pocket passer.
Give Stroud a slight No. 1 advantage over Young with the QB not going to Houston, Indianapolis and still hoping Richardson and Las Vegas are still eyeing Levis. So in the end, the Texans and Panthers did little to change the way the QBs should get off the board early.
The Panthers have decent cap room and will need to use it wisely in free agency in light of their soon-to-be rookie starting QB, especially with a massive shrink in their significant draft capital this year and beyond.
Still rated “above average” for the deal because either Stroud or Young should be good as long-term pros, they end their cycle of bridge QBs after Cam Newton’s best days. They’re just more handcuffed around the QB to help him win big sooner rather than later.