If you go to your favorite search engine, whether it's Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc., and search for the top 2023 NFL Draft prospects, you will find many credible sites. The sites include Pro Football Focus (PFF), ESPN, CBS, NFL.com, The Draft Network, and more. However, those boards are not team specific. The Chicago Bears and other teams should be ranking players based on talent for a "best-player-available" approach, but should also be adjusting their boards based on current rosters, offensive and defensive schemes, and inside intel that outsiders do not have access to at this point.
What I am going to do now, is look at my current draft board, compare it to other analysts' draft boards, and then make an attempt to predict the Bears' top 10 prospects on their 2023 NFL Draft board. What we know for sure is that a couple of months back, Ryan Poles made it known that they view six to eight players as "blue chip" options.
Attempting to predict the top of the Chicago Bears draft board
The quarterbacks were said to be a part of those analyses, but it does not mean any of them land in Ryan Poles' top 10. If I was a betting man, C.J. Stroud, Bryce Young, Will Levis, and Anthony Richardson are not on the Bears draft board. The declaration of sticking with Justin Fields, coupled with the trade from first overall pick down to nine, tells us that Ryan Poles has no interest in taking a quarterback in the first round. Therefore, none of the top-four quarterbacks should be on the draft board. That makes things a little easier as we cross them off the list.
With the quarterbacks off the draft board, let's make a prediction of who actually is in the top 10 of Ryan Poles' draft board. In no particular order...
The Chicago Bears must have these two in the top 10 of their draft board
Paris Johnson, Jr., OT - Ohio State
The Chicago Bears need help on the offensive line and therefore it only makes sense for Ryan Poles and Ian Cunningham to have Paris Johnson, Jr. near the top of their draft board. I cannot tell you for certain that Johnson is at the top of the Chicago Bears 2023 NFL Draft list, but he has to be close. I am not even sure that Poles and Cunningham have Johnson at the top of their offensive tackle list. Johnson is my top offensive tackle prospect, but I am not looking to argue with Ryan Poles.
What I do know is that Johnson has the length and size that Ryan Poles covets in his offensive linemen. He stands 6'6" and weighs in at 313 pounds. I would be very happy with Johnson being selected with the ninth pick. However, there are many other names to consider.
Broderick Jones, OT - Georgia
The other top offensive tackle prospect and a player I am guessing will be available at nine is Broderick Jones. Jones is a bit raw, but his ceiling is much higher than say Peter Skoronski and Paris Johnson. However, he has a mauler mentality. Jones is constantly moving defenders in the run game and is adequate enough as a pass-blocker. He is slightly smaller than Johnson at 6'5" but he honestly has more upside than Johnson -- unfortunately, upside doesn't always work out.
Two more prospects who must be near the top of the Bears draft board
Peter Skoronski, OL - Northwestern
Continuing with the offensive line theme, Peter Skoronski is the only other offensive lineman I think lands in the top 10 of the Chicago Bears 2023 NFL Draft board. He is not in my top 10 because I do not value him as an offensive tackle and I devalue the guard position. That said, Skoronski is the best offensive lineman prospect regardless of position in this draft class. He projects as an elite guard in the NFL and a guy who could play right tackle decently enough.
Will Anderson, EDGE - Alabama
Remember, these are not in order. Will Anderson is easily the top prospect in the 2023 NFL Draft. He is at the top of my draft board and should be on Ryan Poles' draft board too despite the fact he will never fall to nine. Anderson also does not project well as a 4-3 defensive end. He is better suited as a 3-4 outside linebacker, but he is gifted and talented enough to play both positions with success.
Anderson is 6'3" and 252 pounds. He has excellent burst off the ball and can both defend the run and rush the quarterback. He is a complete player and should see instant success at the NFL level.
Two prospects who should be high on the Chicago Bears draft board
We are through four players (not in any particular order) and have six others to consider. As you can see, without quarterbacks, this list might look different when looking at other analysts because the quarterbacks will not be found. That leaves room for a few names that might not normally be in the top 10. Broderick Jones for example is probably one of those names. That is not the case for these next two prospects though.
Devon Witherspoon, CB - Illinois
I am very high on Devon Witherspoon as a prospect. He ran a 4.42 40-yard dash at his Pro Day yesterday and now I'm even more excited to see him blossom in the NFL. If he were to fall to nine, I wouldn't care that cornerback is not as big of a need as some of the other positions, I'd be pounding the table for him here in Chicago. Witherspoon has great speed, size and athleticism. He can be a ball hawk too and if Chicago had him and Jaylon Johnson on the outside with Kyler Gordon in the slot, they'd be one of the best defensive backfields in the NFL.
That said, I doubt he falls. In fact, I'm very nervous he ends up in Detroit at sixth overall.
Tyree Wilson, DE - Texas Tech
If you love players with upside and elite measurables, then look no further than Tyree Wilson. Wilson is long and athletic. He hasn't tested in enough categories to have a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) but I'd imagine he would find himself above 9.0 (the cutoff for Ryan Poles it seems). He stands 6'6", weighs 270 pounds and has nearly 36" long arms. He uses his length to his advantage when getting to the quarterback -- now he just needs to improve his burst off the ball.
These might be my two favorite realistic Chicago Bears prospects
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR - Ohio State
I'm very high on Devon Witherspoon -- even more so than Jaxon Smith-Njigba. However, I believe that Smith-Njigba is more likely to be available at nine than Witherspoon. The good news is that there are quite a few prospects who I like for the Chicago Bears in this draft. I have a feeling Ryan Poles will not disappoint me. Taking a wide receiver after trading for both Chase Claypool and D.J. Moore might seem like crazy talk, but if you want to give Justin Fields weapons, give him the top wide receiver in this draft class.
Myles Murphy, DE - Clemson
Seeing Myles Murphy dominate his Pro Day made me very happy seeing I have been shouting from the rooftops that he is a top-10 prospect. I have him much higher in my rankings (releasing those soon), but even if Ryan Poles and Ian Cunningham don't value him the way I do (properly), he should still be in the top 10 of their 2023 NFL Draft board.
Murphy has an unofficial 9.88 RAS which screams athleticism. He projects as an elite run-defender and should see eight to 10 sacks per year on average. If Murphy is available at nine, I would be ecstatic if Ryan Poles brought the Clemson star to Chicago.
The final two prospects on the Chicago Bears 2023 NFL Draft board
Jalen Carter, DT - Georgia
When it comes to the Jalen Carter situation, we have to trust that Ryan Poles is doing his due diligence and gets a true feel for Carter's mentality, work ethic, and maturity. Right now, I'm probably not touching Jalen Carter. However, I'd be open to the idea that he convince me otherwise. This is likely why Ryan Poles used a top-30 visit on Carter.
Even without the off-the-field issues, there have been some other red flags. He struggled during his Pro Day and he is rumored to have taken plays off at times. Carter is still in my top 10 because if everything clicks he could be one of the more dominant 3-technique defensive linemen in the league. That said, I'm probably going elsewhere -- "a safer pick."
Christian Gonzalez, CB - Oregon
An important trait for any cornerback is the ability to be flexible and move the hips to keep up with the receiver. The key is to almost never put your back to the quarterback. Well, the fluidity in Christian Gonzalez' hips is fantastic. He typically keeps his body turned in a way to keep an eye on the quarterback's eyes and/or throwing motion. Surprisingly, he is not the biggest ball hawk, but he'd be a great addition to the roster should Devon Witherspoon not fall to nine.