The Las Vegas Raiders reportedly explored trading with the Chicago Bears for the No. 1 pick, but the price was considered to be too high.
Once the 2022 NFL regular season ended, the world waited to see who would be able to get the Chicago Bears to give up the No. 1 overall pick. After all, the Bears didn’t have a need at quarterback, as they had Justin Fields.
Last week, the Carolina Panthers won out, as they were able to acquire the No. 1 overall pick from the Bears in exchange for their No. 9 and 64 overall picks in 2023, a first-round pick in 2024, a second-round pick in 2025, and wide receiver DJ Moore.
While the Panthers won out, one team that explored a move up to the No. 1 pick were the Las Vegas Raiders.
According to The Athletic’s Tashan Reed and Jeff Howe, the Raiders explored moving up from the No. 7 overall pick to No. 1, and they found out what the asking price would have been, even though they never made a formal offer. The word around the NFL Scouting Combine was that the Bears were looking for their 2023 first- and second-round picks, and two future first-round picks, a price that the Raiders deemed “too steep.”
Raiders reportedly found Bears asking price for No. 1 pick ‘too steep’
The Raiders were in need of a quarterback entering the league year, as they released Derek Carr from his contract. That put them in obvious contention to select one of the top quarterback prospects in this year’s NFL Draft class, and a team that could potentially move up. But, that never came to fruition, as the Panthers gave the Bears multiple draft picks and a No. 1 wide receiver for Fields to target in 2023 and beyond.
Las Vegas brought in a quarterback who has familiarity with head coach Josh McDaniels, and it was none other than Jimmy Garoppolo. Prior to becoming the San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback in recent years, he was Tom Brady’s backup with the New England Patriots, where McDaniels was offensive coordinator. The Raiders and Garoppolo agreed to terms on a three-year, $72.8 million contract, which became official on Friday, March 17.
Even though the Raiders signed Garoppolo, they are still in position to draft one of the top four quarterbacks available. Realistically, it would be the last of either Alabama’s Bryce Young, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Kentucky’s Will Levis, and Florida’s Anthony Richardson, if they were to stay put at the No. 7 overall spot in the first round.
The Bears understandably had a high asking price for the first-overall pick, and they made out quite well after the Panthers made the leap from No. 9.
