The Bears are expected to pursue a wide receiver with the No. 19 pick of the draft in April. That well could be.
But until free agency has played out, making any draft prediction outside of the Indianapolis Colts and Andrew Luck is dicey at best. If the Bears acquire a Marques Colston or Vincent Jackson, they will look at other needs when their time comes.
But the Minnesota Vikings have not discouraged talk of trading their pick at No. 3 overall, expected by many observers to be USC tackle Matt Kalil. Frankly that pick should appeal to the Vikings, who landed Trojan tackle Ron Yary with the No. 1-overall pick of the 1968 draft. Yary at right tackle contributed to the Vikings reaching (albeit losing) four Super Bowls and wound up in the Hall of Fame.
But Vikings general manager Rick Spielman, once the Bears pro personnel director under Mark Hatley, announced that offers are now being entertained.
If someone wants to come up and get our pick, were going to be more than willing to listen, Spielman told NFL Network.
One of the elite-grade picks of this draft is expected to be Oklahoma State wide receiver Justin Blackmon, who isnt likely to last past No. 5. If the Vikings are shopping, No. 3, a deal would seem worth exploring.
Dont count on it.
NFL
The Bears have done a trade with the Vikings involving a draft choice just once (1966) in Minnesotas history. Teams dislike dealing with division partners, who are less likely to give anything of value to a rival and want to avoid the chance of strengthening a rival.
Spielman knows the business. He also knows the Bears, Lions and Packers. Unless he is confident of a deal that will weaken one of them, his deal wont be with Chicago, Detroit or Green Bay, at least not directly.