The Bear’s Den, March 1, 2023

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARRRSSSS

Bears GM Ryan Poles is all for trading back in draft, but ‘it just depends how far back’ - Chicago Sun-Times - While the Bears don’t seem to be eyeing a quarterback and could parlay the No. 1 pick into more assets, they still need a star out of this draft class.

Bears keep preaching faith in QB Justin Fields - Chicago Sun-Times - A few days before last year’s draft, general manager Ryan Poles brought a special guest into the Bears’ high-tech Halas Hall draft room: Justin Fields.

NFL Scouting Combine: Bears GM Ryan Poles says teams haven’t asked if Justin Fields is available - Chicago Sun-Times - Poles said Tuesday that there’s one player that hasn’t been asked about in trades: quarterback Justin Fields.

NFL Draft Combine: Will the Bears trade the No. 1 pick? GM Ryan Poles says it makes sense - Chicago Sun-Times - The Bears are widely thought to be sticking with Justin Fields at quarterback, making it sensible to trade down.

Top 5 Ryan Poles takeaways from the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine - CHGO - Bears general manager Ryan Poles sat down with the CHGO Bears for an exclusive interview and talked about Justin Fields, the draft and plenty more.

NFL Combine: Ryan Poles continues to hedge his bets on Bears QB Justin Fields - CHGO - Justin Fields isn't getting traded. Right? Bears fans from all across the country have voiced their passionate views about keeping QB1 right where he is. The Bears finally have a quarterback they say. We are not trading him. Stop talking about it on the CHGO Bears Podcast or anywhere else please and thank you. The

Braggs’ NFL Combine Diary: From laying bricks to covering the Bears, today was a dream come true - CHGO - Note: Greg Braggs is in Indianapolis this week with the CHGO Bears team and will be filing dispatches each day about his experiences at his first-ever NFL Combine. Yes, I was nervous. Actually, I was terrified for today. Why? I don't know, it seems silly looking back. But when you are living your dream

Keeping Justin Fields, trading No. 1 pick is wise move for Bears - NBC Sports Chicago - Nothing has changed. The Bears plan for Justin Fields to be their starter in 2023. That's the right move for the future of the franchise.

Pete Carroll's QB remarks put Seahawks on Bears' radar for No. 1 pick trade - NBC Sports Chicago - While the Texans slowed played their hand Tuesday, the Seahawks and Raiders crawled onto the periphery of the No. 1 pick sweepstakes.

‘Bear Down & Out’ review: Insightful documentary sums up why Chicago’s on the verge of losing its team - Chicago Sun-Times - A timely, valuable piece of work, NBC Sports Chicago’s overview is must-see TV for hardcore Bears fans and for anyone in the Chicago area.

Ryan Poles has no regrets about Chase Claypool trade, but is he ready to pay him? - Chicago Sun-Times - Two seasons into his career, Claypool looked like he was headed toward a big contract. Now, as he approaches the typical time to talk about an extension, he has quite a bit to prove.

KNOW THINE ENEMY

Lions plan to redesign uniforms in 2024 - ProFootballTalk - The Lions are heading into their final season with their current uniform design.

NFL Combine notes: Packers GM awaits word from Aaron Rodgers - Chicago Sun-Times - Rodgers is under contract but hasn’t committed to playing in 2023.

FREE AGENCY & DRAFT

Tee Higgins trade talk silenced by Bengals GM Duke Tobin at NFL Combine - NBC Sports Chicago - Tee Higgins’ future is in Cincinnati.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Brandon Beane: We're still working through what we'll do without Leslie Frazier this year - ProFootballTalk - The Bills made a surprise announcement on Tuesday morning, as defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier will step away from coaching in 2023 with a plan to return in 2024.

Duke Tobin not interested in trading Tee Higgins: "They want a receiver, go find your own" - ProFootballTalk - On Tuesday, Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin sounded like someone who has absolutely no interest in removing Higgins from his team’s roster.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Bears GM Ryan Poles details Bears' strategy for trading No. 1 pick - NBC Sports Chicago - Ryan Poles will have a lot of different factors to weigh when finding the right deal for the No. 1 pick.

Bears GM Ryan Poles reaffirmed Justin Fields is QB1, but will look at QBs in NFL Draft - NBC Sports Chicago - Chicago Bears general manager reaffirmed Justin Fields received a big vote of confidence from Ryan Poles at the state of the franchise address.

Bears' Eddie Jackson looks good in injury rehab, per Ryan Poles - NBC Sports Chicago - Bears safety Eddie Jackson suffered a Lisfranc injury in Week 12 of the 2022 NFL season.

Dannehy: Four Things to Watch at Combine - Da Bears Blog - With the first pick and the possibility of getting more selections, all eyes are going to be on the Chicago Bears in Indianapolis this weekend.

Matt Eberflus: Bears are looking to add a ‘playmaker’ at WR - 670 The Score - The Bears had the NFL’s last-ranked passing game in 2022, averaging 130.5 yards per contest as quarterback Justin Fields struggled to spark the aerial attack with the team lacking talented targets.

Duerrwaecuter: Bears’ Matt Eberflus says ‘Nothing has changed’ with Justin Fields - Windy City Gridiron - Moments after GM Ryan Poles met with the media, HC Matt Eberflus spent some time to give his early thoughts on the Bears’ plans for 2023.

Infante's 2023 Bears mock draft: Double trade-back edition - Windy City Gridiron - What would a draft haul possibly look like if the Bears traded down twice in Round 1?

Duerrwaechter: Ryan Poles’ presser - ‘The plan’ is Justin Fields will be the Bears' QB1 - Windy City Gridiron - Plenty of interesting info, news, and non-news related items were dropped in Ryan Poles’ meeting with the media at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Chicago Bears 2023 Free Agency Roundtable: Unrealistic dream target - Windy City Gridiron - The WCG crew ran through several questions about the Bears’ 2023 free agency, with our unrealistic dream target being the first topic!

Gabriel: Offensive players to keep an eye on at the NFL Combine - Windy City Gridiron - Greg Gabriel will be paying close attention to several players during the NFL Combine, and here are the receivers and o-linemen he’ll be watching.

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