Panthers Acquire Top Pick In 2023 NFL Draft From Bears: Report

The Carolina Panthers have reportedly pulled off a move to acquire the rights to the top selection of the 2023 NFL Draft set to take place from April 27 to 29 in Kansas City, Missouri.

An unnamed league source cited by CNN revealed that the Chicago Bears agreed to trade the rights to the No. 1 overall pick of the upcoming draft to the Panthers.

Carolina will reportedly send wide receiver DJ Moore, the 2023 No. 9 overall pick, a 2023 second-round pick, a first-round pick in 2024, and a second-round pick in 2025, the source said. ESPN’s Adam Schefter also reported the blockbuster deal.

The deal will only be made official once the new league year starts Wednesday.

“You go get the guy that you want, you know,” Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer stated at the combine last week. “If you have a conviction on a guy, you go get him. It’s pretty simple that way. If you don’t know and you’re going to give all these resources to go up and get it, you’re hurting your team in the long run.”

“You better be right. You better have conviction if you do move up. When you do that, you’re all in,” he continued.

The Panthers are expected to select a quarterback in the 2023 NFL Draft after they cut ties with Baker Mayfield midseason. Mayfield was subsequently picked up by the Los Angeles Rams.

Among the players that Carolina may end up picking include Alabama’s Bryce Young, Florida’s Anthony Richardson, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud and Kentucky’s Will Levis.

The Panthers have not had a winning season since 2017. Last season, they also changed head coaches after five games and finished 7-10 for the year.

It should be noted that the Panthers did not initially want to part ways with Moore. But seeing that the Bears wanted the former Maryland star, plus the fact that this would spare them from giving up another future first-round pick, Carolina agreed to the deal, an unnamed source told ESPN.

Aside from a play-caller, the Panthers are also expected to skim through available wide receivers in the free-agent market. Carolina only has Terrace Marshall Jr., Shi Smith and Laviska Shenault Jr. as their proven receivers. They had a combined 77 catches in 2022.

For their part, the Bears will inherit the remainder of the three-year contract extension Moore signed in March 2022. The 25-year-old player has a $19.965 million base salary for the 2023 season.