Report: Falcons declined a simple trade with the Bears.

The Bears of Chicago made an offer on NFL Draft night that the Atlanta Falcons couldn’t turn down, but they did.

Just before to the Atlanta Falcons selecting player number one in the first round of the 2024 NFL

Draft, an important event took place. Setting the stage for a potentially game-changing move, Ryan

Poles, general manager of the Chicago Bears, demonstrated his strategic acumen by making the Falcons’ management an exceptionally generous offer.

After the Bears revealed their draft-night tape, Ari Meirov of X said, “The Bears were open to

trading a future 4th to the Falcons to move from 9 to 8 to secure Rome Odunze.” It appears that

Atlanta was uninterested. Odunze is still with the Bears. However, this is significant as Atlanta was denied a future fifth this week due to tampering.”

This is a straightforward analysis of the draft night events. The Bears were prepared to trade up,

anticipating that the Falcons might select either the top defensive player available or Odunze, a

playmaker they coveted. Their aim was to dissuade the Falcons from taking their desired player.

As it turned out, the Bears’ concern about the Falcons picking their target was unnecessary. With

Caleb Williams chosen as the No. 1 overall pick, there was no scenario where the Bears would have

considered selecting Michael Penix Jr. at No. 8, even if they had swapped positions with the Falcons.

Given that no defensive players had been selected in the first seven picks, Poles’ decision to secure

their target, WR Romeo Odunze, through a calculated move was astute. However, Atlanta Falcons

‘ general manager Terry Fontenot surprised many by opting to draft quarterback Michael Penix Jr.,

declining an offer of a future 4th-round pick, despite having recently signed veteran Kirk Cousins to a substantial contract in April.

One might question why the Falcons opted not to trade back.

Upon reflection, there are few compelling reasons why Atlanta would pass up the opportunity to

move back a spot and essentially gain a free 4th-round pick. Initially, they might have feared that

the Bears would trade the pick to another quarterback-needy team, such as the Las Vegas Raiders, who were strongly linked to the standout from Washington in the lead-up to the draft.

However, Fontenot could have mitigated this risk by securing assurances from Poles that the Bears

wouldn’t execute such a trade. Alternatively, he could have delayed negotiations long enough to

ensure the Bears couldn’t flip the No. 8 pick before the Falcons were on the clock at No. 9.

Secondly, trading back in the first round has not been Terry Fontenot’s typical strategy. Throughout

his tenure with the Falcons and even during his one year as an assistant general manager with the

New Orleans Saints in 2020, Fontenot’s teams did not trade back in the first round.

While questions persist about the Falcons’ decision, this only serves to prolong the debate. What

exactly did the Falcons stand to lose by moving from the 8th to the 9th pick?