Landing spot No. 2: Tennessee Titans trade Derrick Henry to the Chicago Bears
The Bears might think they are further along toward being a playoff contender than their roster might imply. They and the Panthers completed a huge trade last week that will have Carolina send the number 9 and 61 overall choices in the 2023 NFL draft along with a first-round pick in 2024, and a second-round choice in 2025, as well as receiver DJ Moore to the Bears for the first pick overall in this year’s draft. Sure, that’s a good haul for the Bears but at pick number 1 they could have taken defensive tackle Jalen Carter or edge rusher Will Anderson.
What Chicago truly needs, however, is a good running back that can help alleviate some of the pressure on quarterback Justin Fields. Chicago has a terrible offensive line and not-great receivers, but Derrick Henry can churn out yards even behind a mediocre line. Plus, for the Bears, if he is running the ball opponents will have to focus a bunch on Henry which should leave Chicago’s receivers in more one-on-one coverage.
The Bears definitely have the draft capital to offer the most enticing package for the Tennessee Titans. Pick number 9 overall from Chicago is way too much to ask for an aging running back, but Chicago has two second-round picks in 2023 so taking at least one of them should be expected. The Bears also have two fourth-round choices so one of those and a second-round pick should start a conversation.
If I were Tennessee Titans management and thinking of trading Henry to the Bears I would want as much as I can in this year’s draft. The Bears have plenty of picks (10 in total) while Tennessee only has six. While Tennessee doesn’t get a first-rounder in this trade, they do get three choices in the middle rounds where they should be able to get at least two potential starters.