Here's what Bears were willing to trade in 2024 NFL Draft to get Rome Odunze

Bears GM Ryan Poles was getting antsy as their No. 9 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft crept closer with every player yanked off the draft board.

Poles had his guy in mind. He wanted Rome Odunze. And after the draft, he told the media that assistant GM Ian Cunningham was integral in keeping him from making a trade to move up from Odunze.

"Ian [Cunningham] and I sequenced a board all the way across and Rome was extremely high on that list," Poles said after the first round. "That's why I was nervous that he wasn't gonna be there at No. 9. Our simulations, it was about a 50-50 shot if he was going to be there.

"But as it started to unfold, Ian had to hold me back from not trying to trade up and do something crazy to get him"

A new clip from Roku's newest show "NFL Draft: The Pick Is In," shows Poles on the phone lining up a trade with the Falcons at No. 8. The clip shows Poles calling Terry Fontenot, the Falcons general manager, and tossing the idea around of trading him a future fourth-round pick to move from the No. 9 to No. 8 pick in the draft.

The #Bears were open to trading a future 4th to the #Falcons to move from 9 to 8 to secure Rome Odunze.

Seems like Atlanta wasn't interested. The Bears still got Odunze.

But this feels noteworthy after Atlanta lost a future 5th this week for tampering.pic.twitter.com/cB2kAn7fmO

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) June 14, 2024

"Would you move back one spot? Is that in the cards, or?" Poles asked Fontenot on the phone. "Like a future fourth (round pick). We did the same thing with Philly last year."

In the 2023 NFL Draft, the Eagles gave the Bears a 2024 fourth-round pick to move from the No. 9 to the No. 10 pick in the draft. Then, the Eagles wanted Jalen Carter, who slipped far from his initial draft projection. The Bears didn't want him, so they traded down one pick and selected Darnell Wright.

Luckily, the Bears didn't have to cough up a future fourth-round pick to move up. Odunze fell in their laps after the Falcons shocked the NFL world by taking Odunze's quarterback --- Michael Penix Jr. --- with the No. 8 pick, after recently signing Kirk Cousins.

"No," Poles said if he expected that move. "I'm just happy it worked out that way," he said with a smile.

The Bears made their move, grabbing the big-bodied, quick Odunze to pair him with DJ Moore and Keenan Allen. With that trio, Poles and the Bears crafted one of the most lethal wide receiver rooms in the NFL, rounded out by a player Poles fell in love with leading up to the draft.

"Man, I don't know where to start with that guy," Poles said of Odunze. "First of all, the human being, what a great guy, work ethic, just blue collar in the way he goes about things. But as a receiver, he can line up anywhere, inside (or) outside. You love his ability to finish in contested situations. He plays strong. He plays big. He can run after catches very good; he was a punt returner, as well. I mean, the kid's put time in and he's gotten better and better every single year.

"He's a winner. He can impact the game at any moment."