Re-grading Panthers-Bears trade with teams set to meet in Week 10: Pre-draft deal got Carolina Bryce Young

The Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears meet this Thursday night for the first time since the monster trade between the teams that moved the Panthers up from No. 9 to No. 1 in last April’s draft — earning the rights to select Bryce Young at No. 1 overall. 

In the massive deal, the Panthers relinquished the No. 9 overall selection this year, a second-round pick (No. 61 overall), a first-round pick in 2024, a second-round pick in 2025, and wide receiver D.J. Moore. 

This deal was graded back when it was made, but how do those grades hold up? Let’s re-grade the deal: 

The Panthers traded up to No. 1 to get their franchise quarterback. While it’s way too early to judge Bryce Young, Carolina did have the opportunity to select C.J. Stroud with the pick — and make this trade significantly better. 

Stroud is completing 62% of his passes for 2,270 yards with 14 touchdowns to just one interception (102.9 rating) while Young has completed 63.9% of his passes for 1,375 yards with eight touchdowns to seven interceptions (77.1 rating). The Texans are 4-4 and in the midst of a playoff race, while the Panthers are 1-7 and wondering which direction the franchise goes from here — and they don’t have a first-round pick in 2024 (which would be needed to get Young an elite receiver or playmaker). 

Young is averaging 5.5 yards per attempt this season (the fewest in the NFL, and the fewest by any No. 1 rookie quarterback with 250-plus attempts in the common draft era). Plenty of No. 1 overall picks struggled in Year 1 (Troy Aikman, Eli Manning, Jared Goff, Trevor Lawrence), so it’s hard to write off Young at this point. 

The swing was worth it for the Panthers, even if the execution was poor. 

The Bears are an abject disaster this season, yet have a very bright future thanks to the Panthers giving them plenty of assets for the No. 1 overall pick. Justin Fields hasn’t developed like Chicago would have hoped, but D.J. Moore already has more receiving yards (735) than any Bears player had in 2022.

Moore is a player Chicago can build around, especially since the Bears have a projected $82.4 million in salary cap space after this season. Carolina did give Chicago a first-round pick in 2024 (which currently is the No. 2 overall pick) and a second-round pick in 2025. The Bears also currently have the No. 3 overall pick thanks to their 2-7 record this season. 

Matt Eblerfus might not be back, so the Bears can reset the offense by getting an offensive-minded coach. They are also in position to select Caleb Williams or Drake Maye — and select Marvin Harrison Jr. Perhaps a team will give Chicago even more assets for Fields prior to the draft. 

The Bears did trade down to No. 9 in last year’s draft and passed on Jalen Carter (twice, if you’re counting No. 1), getting Darnell Wright and a 2024 fourth-round pick in a deal with Philadelphia. That 2023 second-round pick (No. 61) was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 56) and the Bears selected Tyrique Stevenson.

This trade comes down to how well the Bears are set up for 2024 and beyond. That’s a massive win.