Bears fans’ desperation for a franchise quarterback is only a step or two ahead of their desperation for a franchise wide receiver.
Former general manager Phil Emery was a hero when he traded for three-time Pro Bowl receiver Brandon Marshall six weeks after being hired in 2012. Alas, it was all too fleeting. Three years later, Marshall was such a drag on the culture at Halas Hall that Emery’s successor, Ryan Pace, was hailed nearly as much for getting rid of Marshall as Emery was for acquiring him.
That’s typical of the Bears’ luck with wide receivers throughout their post-Sid Luckman-era history. Harlon Hill was a big-play sensation on a Hall of Fame arc for three seasons in the 1950s (134 receptions, 3,041 yards, 32 touchdowns in 36 games) before his production fizzled, and he was all but done at 28.
Johnny Morris is still the Bears’ career leader in receiving yards (5,059) 56 years after his last game in 1967. His total is the lowest franchise-receiving mark among the 32 NFL franchises, with a total of 202 players (169 wide receivers) exceeding Morris’ mark. (The Vikings’ Justin Jefferson needed just 52 games to exceed Morris’ total, with 5,134 receiving yards two games into his fourth season with the Vikings in 2023.)
So it’s no wonder that even with the best receiving tandem in franchise history — certainly the most accomplished — in DJ Moore and Keenan Allen, Bears fans are looking for more Thursday night in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The dream scenario still exists — that Bears general manager Ryan Poles might trade the No. 9 overall pick to move up and draft Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr., the son of Colts Hall of Fame receiver Marvin Harrison, who is considered one of the best receiving prospects in years.
And there is still hope the Bears will have a shot at LSU’s Malik Nabers or Washington’s Rome Odunze — two other receivers considered to have difference-making, Justin Jefferson-level impact. That might be a bit of wishful mock-drafting, as it’s possible all three top receivers could be gone by the ninth pick. But even national mock drafts have the Bears picking Odunze, so it’s not just Bears fans trying to will their best-case-scenario to reality.
It also remains to be seen if Poles is as fixated on a wide receiver as Bears fans are. With Moore and Allen in tow, he might have other priorities, especially if a trade-down deal is too good to pass up.
We’ll see about that. But look at it this way: if Poles is right about the more important pick in this draft — USC quarterback Caleb Williams in Shane Waldron’s offense — drafting the Marvin Harrisons of the world won’t be as critical as it usually is for the Bears.
Good quarterbacks in good offenses make first-round wide receivers out of lower-round picks. Hitting on the Williams/Waldron connection would open up all sorts of possibilities that are kind of foreign to Bears fans. It’s the difference between Anthony Miller (second round, 50th overall) and Davante Adams (2-53). Or Adam Shaheen (2-45) and George Kittle (5-146). Or David Montgomery (3-73) and Alvin Kamara (3-67).
The Packers have been turning second- and third-round picks (or lower) into first-round production for decades with Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers — Adams, Jordy Nelson (3-36), Donald Driver (7-213), Antonio Freeman (3-90), Greg Jennings (2-52) and Randall Cobb (2-64).
The Saints’ most productive receivers in the Drew Brees era were Marques Colston (7-252) and Michael Thomas (2-47). The Patriots most productive receiver in the Tom Brady era was Julian Edelman (7-232). The Steelers’ most productive receivers with Ben Roethlisberger were A.J. Brown (6-195), Hines Ward (3-92) and Mike Wallace (3-84).
All those quarterbacks won the Super Bowl at least once. Since 2008, in fact, the leading wide receiver on 14 of 16 Super Bowl winners was drafted after the first round.
So if the Bears miss out on Harrison, Nabers or Odunze in this draft, keep in mind that it’s more often the elite quarterback who makes the elite receiver than the other way around.
