The Thursday Night Football matchup between the Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers had no playoff implications but it still held plenty of meaning.
The Bears own two potentially valuable first round picks in the 2024 NFL Draft. The first is their own. The second is the Panthers. So beating Carolina wouldn't just give them a victory, it would put them closer to holding the No. 1 overall pick in the draft as well.
With the win, the Bears improved to 3-7 and the Panthers dropped to 1-8. That record has Carolina picking No. 1 if the season were to end today.
Updated 2024 NFL Draft order
- Chicago Bears via Carolina Panthers (1-8)
- Arizona Cardinals (1-8)
- New York Giants (2-8)
- New England Patriots (2-8)
- Chicago Bears (3-7)
- Los Angeles Rams (3-6)
- Green Bay Packers (3-5)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)
- Denver Broncos (3-5)
- Tennessee Titans (3-5)
- Atlanta Falcons (4-5)
- Washington Commanders (4-5)
- Indianapolis Colts (4-5)
- Las Vegas Raiders (4-5)
- Arizona Cardinals via Houston Texans (4-4)
- New York Jets (4-4)
- Los Angeles Chargers (4-4)
- Buffalo Bills (5-4)
- New Orleans Saints (5-4)
- Minnesota Vikings (5-4)
- Dallas Cowboys (5-3)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3)
- Houston Texans via Cleveland Browns (5-3)
- Cincinnati Bengals (5-3)
- Seattle Seahawks (5-3)
- San Francisco 49ers (5-3)
- Miami Dolphins (6-3)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (6-2)
- Detroit Lions (6-2)
- Baltimore Ravens (7-2)
- Kansas City Chiefs (7-2)
- Philadelphia Eagles (8-1)
The Bears hold two Top 5 picks as it stands. The Arizona Cardinals are the biggest threat to the No. 1 pick and they've got Kyler Murray coming back soon. After that, the Giants and Patriots have a shot at falling into the No. 1 spot, but both of those teams need to lose out while the Panthers win at least one more game.
As it stands, Chicago has the best odds of picking first and essentially winning the Caleb Williams sweepstakes. That's assuming the USC quarterback is still the favorite to go No. 1 overall.