Chicago Bears Last Minute 2025 NFL Draft Thoughts: What's the cost of moving up, who's the top target, and what happens if all else fails? (2025)

The 2025 NFL Draft is just a few hours away and all eyes are on the Chicago Bears to see if general manager Ryan Poles will make a move one way or another.

Earlier this week, Poles and his assistant general manager Ian Cunningham each mentioned that things could get wild (with a smile on their faces) on Thursday night.

The Bears seem to be planning something big and phones have likely been ringing non-stop in Chicago. But, what's the big move the Bears could try to make? Who could they be targeting? And what happens if it doesn't work out? Let's get into it.

Let's first preface that if the Bears move up from the 10th overall pick later tonight, it will be the first time in Ryan Poles' tenure that he trades up in the first-round.

There's two landing spots that make sense for the Bears in terms of which team ahead of them would be willing to move back in a trade: The New York Giants (3rd overall) and the Jacksonville Jaguars (5th overall).

Moving into the Top-3 would cost significantly more than moving to 5th. And who's to say New York would be willing to drop from 3rd to 10th with everyone's job on the line? It would take a solid return for the Giants to consider such a move, and here's what it might cost:

Bears Receive: 3rd overall pick
Giants Receive: 10th overall pick, 41st overall pick, 2026 first-round pick

This would be the starting price for the Giants to consider, in my opinion. And coughing up a future first should be off the table for the Bears.

Which leads us to option number two, which is calling the phones in Jacksonville. Rookie general manager James Gladstone wants to make a splash in his first draft and everyone seems to believe he will take an offensive weapon for head coach Liam Coen in the first-round. That could be running back Ashton Jeanty at 5, or it would be wide receiver Tet McMillan at a later pick if the Jags can move back. Here's what the Bears should offer:

Bears Receive: 5th overall pick, 126th overall pick
Jaguars Receive: 10th overall pick, 39th overall pick

This seems far more doable for Chicago, parting ways with one of the second-rounders while netting a fourth-round pick in return, thus allowing the Bears to move up and take their top guy while the Jaguars slide back and still come away with an ideal offensive weapon they've been linked to at 10.

This depends on how high the Bears ultimately end up. If Chicago gets to three, the team seriously has to consider Abdul Carter if he's on the board, the top edge rusher in the class to pair with Montez Sweat and Dayo Odeyingbo. Carter is an elite talent and would give Chicago a dominate defensive front for Dennis Allen.

If Chicago only gets to five, Ashton Jeanty is the guy. The Bears have been heavily linked to Jeanty , to the point I could even consider them picking him over Carter at three. Regardless, five is the magic number to land Jeanty. You take the Jaguars off the clock and jump the Las Vegas Raiders, who are also sniffing around the top back.

Carter and Jeanty are among the 4-5 truly elite prospects in the class, and it's very likely none of those 4-5 will be there at 10. If the Bears are serious about adding an elite, blue-chip, player to the roster, they'd have to trade up to make it happen.

At the end of the day, it's entirely possible the Giants and Jaguars simply say no and take Carter or Jeanty for themselves, leaving the Bears stuck at 10. Ideally, if that's the case, someone like Mason Graham could fall to 10, and the Bears get lucky.

If not, and it very well seems that way, the pivot plan would be going offensive line according to various draft insiders. The other move on the table here would entail trading back to recoup some later picks and then taking the preferred guy up-front.

Whether at 10 or after a trade back, the two names mentioned for the Bears have been Kelvin Banks Jr. out of Texas and Josh Conerly Jr. out of Oregon. Both players are highly productive players and highly versatile. There's a lot to like about either prospect and the expected run on offensive linemen in the first-round could leave the Bears without a top guy available on Day 2 if they choose to wait it out.

Taking Banks or Conerly in the first-round would then mean targeting other running backs and taking advantage of a deep defensive line class later in the draft.