The first round of the NFL Draft was absolutely nuts.
It felt like it was going to be a another predictable Thursday in late April when the Cleveland Browns selected Myles Garrett with the No. 1 overall pick, but then things got weird.
The Chicago Bears started the madness by giving up a boatload of picks to hop one spot so they could land North Carolina QB Mitch Trubisky. Let's be honest, here. The 49ers were never going to grab Trubisky, so John Lynch was playing with house money in his first go around as general manager.
"I don't know how they could look any worse," ESPN's Paul Finebaum said on SportsCenter about Chicago moving up to get Trubisky. "You could be bellied up at in bar in America last night and clearly see that the 49ers weren't going to take a quarterback. Why the ownership and GM in Chicago would fall for that, I simply do not know. I see nothing but dark days ahead for the Chicago Bears."
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It's clear that almost no one in NFL circles saw this coming.
In early March, Chicago inked QB Mike Glennon to a three-year $43.5 million deal. That's the kind of cash you throw at a starter, not some dude who is going to constantly look over his shoulder at the young buck named Trubisky.
For now, Glennon looks like he got shafted (even though he's rich). He had a chance to be the clear-cut guy and finally get another chance to lead a franchise, but now, when the tiniest thing goes wrong, fans will be calling for the rookie.
That might happen down the line, but the immediate reaction to the stunning trade didn't sit well with Bears' fans at all.
Bears fans are absolutely devastated pic.twitter.com/hrVG7VaRvF
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) April 28, 2017
So that was the response from official Bears' watch party. Clearly a ton of disappointment and heartbreak. I slowed it down and tried to find at least one happy fan. It feels like a few started clapping at the end because they had no clue what else to do, but it was obvious that the overall mood was glum.
Things got way more interesting as fans tuned in from the comfort of their own homes. I'm assuming the draft party crowd kept it at least a little tame because, well you know, they were in public.
These fans, though? Uncensored, raw anger. Thankfully the good folks at SportsCenter bleeped out the profanity, but the uncut versions are widely available on Twitter.
Yoooo I made it on SportsCenter ???? pic.twitter.com/3ia6Xb1pMo
— jack (@The_JackPollard) April 28, 2017
The frustration coming from Chicago fans is multi-layered. The first reason for backlash is the genuine excitement Bears' fans had about Glennon coming in and his potential to revitalize the franchise. Jay Cutler's miserable personality paired with shoddy, inconsistent play took a toll on the die-hards. They were ready to move forward with Glennon, and the curve ball on Thursday night threw them in a tizzy.
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Secondly — and probably the biggest reason for the outbursts — had to do with the Bears' bevy of glaring needs. Their secondary was one of the worst in the league in 2016, and there were so many talented defensive backs they could have snagged on day one. Chicago could use a linebacker, defensive linemen, offensive linemen and wide receiver or really any player at any position. There were far more pressing needs.
Finally, there's no doubt Chicago could have used a young passer if the Glennon experiment doesn't pan out, but is Trubisky really worth giving up four critical picks (No. 3, No. 67, No. 111 this year, third-rounder next year) that could have been used to add much-needed depth? Is the UNC passer that much better than Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson or even Nathan Peterman? I certainly don't think so. If this was Andrew Luck it would have made some sense, but Trubisky has a long way to go before he can sell himself as a NFL-capable starter.
Even further, as Finebaum noted, the Bears could have done exactly what they did without giving up a small fortune. For all of those reasons, Chicago fans were utterly disgusted with the move. I kind of feel bad for Trubisky now. He has an uphill climb ahead.
