The market for the Chicago Bears draft pick just got better

On Thursday, the Carolina Panthers announced the hiring of head coach Frank Reich, the first head coaching hire made by any team in the 2023 offseason. Reich recently coached the Indianapolis Colts for four and a half seasons, starting in 2018 and serving up until he was relieved by the Colts after just nine games in 2022.

Reich, who was also the first quarterback in Carolina Panthers history, will undoubtedly prioritize finding a new franchise quarterback for his new team, especially considering that both Sam Darnold and P.J. Walker are impending free agents this offseason. The Panthers, who currently have the ninth overall pick, have the appropriate resources to be in on every available quarterback this offseason, but there are reasons to believe that they may eventually make a trade with the Chicago Bears ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Could the Carolina Panthers acquire the first overall pick from the Chicago Bears?

It is already well established that the Chicago Bears should be looking to trade out of the first overall pick, and the relationship between potential buyers provides the opportunity for the price of the pick to skyrocket. The Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts, both QB-needy teams who will be picking in the top 4 in this spring’s draft, should be competing with one another to ensure that they can select their quarterback before their division rival has the opportunity to do so. Now, Carolina’s hire makes this a three-team race, and the Chicago Bears could be the benefactor in the end.

Led by Frank Reich, who was fired by the Colts after going just 3-5-1 this season, the Carolina Panthers could look to leapfrog teams in a trade with the Chicago Bears to get their favorite draftee this spring. In doing so, there is a strong chance that they would pick in front of Reich’s former team in the Colts.

For Reich and the Panthers, this would lend some poetic justice, as the Colts refused to invest in a young, high-end quarterback in the four and a half seasons that Reich led the team, instead opting to sign veterans to short-term contracts year after year.

Frank Reich doesn’t strike me as a particularly vengeful guy, but considering his new team’s need for a quarterback, as well as directly competing against his old team and their division rival, I would not be surprised to see the Panthers make an offer to the Chicago Bears, giving them the first pick, and ensuring the Texans can pick a quarterback before the Colts.