The Chicago Bears finished their 2022 season with a record of three wins and 14 losses, the worst in the National Football League, landing them the first overall draft pick in the 2023 draft. Usually, when a team lands the number one pick, they draft a quarterback, however the Bears have a hopeful future in Justin Fields as he heads into his third season in the NFL.

Over the off-season, the Bears have picked up many free agents, including running back D’onta Foreman, defensive tackle Andrew Billings and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds. Along side these free agents, there are also northern Illinois natives: McHenry Community High School alumnus and tight end, Robert Tonyan, and Lakes Community High School alumnus and linebacker, T.J. Edwards, who was a prominent part in the Philadelphia Eagles playoff run last season, leading them to the Super Bowl last season.

According to General Manager Ryan Poles, the Bears are looking better than they did last season on paper, but still have a lot of work to be done to become a top threat. He also believes with the draft coming up, he cannot put too much credit in combine measureables and meetings but rather a benchmark for the players abilities.

The Bears traded the first pick to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for the ninth pick, a second-round 2023, first-round pick 2024, second-round 2025 and wide receiver D.J. Moore. This pick could be beneficial since the Bears are rebuilding, and with a young team, have a bright future ahead of them.

“They made the right moves,” sophomore Rylan Frazer said. “They still need more time to rebuild, but are now hopeful with a stronger offense.”

Now with the ninth pick the Bears might have to change who they take as their first pick; fans have different opinions to what the Bears should do with their pick. Junior Clayton Horton believes the Bears really need to take advantage of the draft with offensive picks, and if they do so have a high chance of achieving a better record and hopeful playoff run under young quarterback Justin Fields.

“I think the Bears should draft the linebacker from Northwestern [Peter Skoronski],” Horton said. “I think the Bears are going to finish this season 10-7.”

The last time the Bears had a winning record was 2018, when they went 12-4 and lost during the Wild Card playoffs. Since then, the Bears placed last in the NFC North this past season and have not had a playoff selection since 2018.

With the new draft picks and hopeful stronger offense, fans and reporters believe the Bears have a better chance at becoming a threat, not only in the NFC North but the league overall, especially now that Aaron Rodgers, the former Green Bay Packers quarterback, has been traded to the New York Jets.

As the Bears go into the draft and the upcoming season, fans may be excited to see how this young team grows and can hope to see a winning record against the Packers again. Tune into the NFL draft April 27 at 6:00p.m. to see how the Bears use this pick.