Ruthie Polinsky, Dave Wannstedt, Alex Brown, and Lance Briggs discuss the Bears obtaining the No. 1 choice in the NFL Draft for the second year in a row on the Football Aftershow following the Bears’ victory over the Falcons.
The Carolina Panthers, who sealed the league’s worst record with a defeat and an Arizona Cardinals win in Week 17, gave the Chicago Bears the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft. With so many teams clustered around six and eight wins, we won’t know where the Bears’ draft pick will fall until the dust settles in Week 18.
The Bears have had the first overall pick in back-to-back years. The order of the NFL draft is determined by “the reverse order of finish in the previous season.” The playoffs results dictate draft order for playoff clubs, therefore the Super Bowl champion picks last. Tiebreakers are used by the league to separate clubs that ended the season with the same record.
Here is the current draft order for the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Teams marked with an asterisk would make the playoffs if the season ended today.
1. Chicago Bears (2-14) (via Carolina Panthers)
2. Washington Commanders (ages 4 to 12)
3. New England Patriots (4-12) are third.
4. Arizona Cardinals (4-12) are fourth.
5th (New York Giants)
The Los Angeles Chargers (5-11) are in sixth place.
The Tennessee Titans (5-11) are ranked seventh.
The New York Jets (6-10) are ranked eighth.
Atlanta Falcons (9-7)
Chicago Bears (9-7)
11. Los Angeles Raiders (7-9)
Minnesota Vikings (9-7)
Saints of New Orleans (8-8)
Denver Broncos (8-8).
The Seattle Seahawks (8-8) are ranked 15th.
The Cincinnati Bengals (8-8) are ranked 16th.
17. Arizona Cardinals (9-7) (via Houston Texans)
The Pittsburgh Steelers (9-7) are ranked 18th.
*The Green Bay Packers (8-8) are ranked 19th.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-8) are ranked 20th.
*The Indianapolis Colts (9-7) are ranked 21st.
*The Los Angeles Rams (9-7) are ranked 22nd.
*The Jacksonville Jaguars (9-7) are ranked 23rd.
*The Buffalo Bills (10-6) are ranked 24th.
*The Kansas City Chiefs (10-6) are ranked 25th.
*The Miami Dolphins (11-5) are ranked 26th.
*The Dallas Cowboys (11-5) are ranked 27th.
*The Detroit Lions (11-5) are ranked 28th.
*The Philadelphia Eagles (11-5) are ranked 29th.
*30. Houston Texans (11-5) (via Cleveland Browns).
The San Francisco 49ers (12-4) are ranked 31st.
The Baltimore Ravens (13-3) are ranked 32nd.
Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns are the only teams without a first-round pick.
The Bears are entering their second offseason in a row with a franchise-altering choice to make with quarterback Justin Fields. If the Bears stick with Fields, they may trade down for a haul, like they did last year, or utilize the No. 1 pick to choose a cornerstone player, such as WR Marvin Harrison Jr. General Manager Ryan Poles might potentially make the risky decision to part ways with Fields in order to draft a new franchise quarterback.
A lot may happen between now and the draft, which begins on April 25 in Detoit.
However, the Bears are currently on the clock.