Bears’ Bradley Sowell eyes front-office future — with support from his Brewers GM brother-in-law

Bradley Sowell made his 2018 draft predictions on a text chain to his fellow Bears offensive linemen.

One by one, his picks came true: inside linebacker Roquan Smith eighth overall, then center James Daniels in the second round. The Bears traded up in the second round to get another player Sowell liked, wide receiver Anthony Miller.

Sowell, the Bears’ offensive tackle-turned-tight end, had studied the draft himself. He analyzes free agency, too, and is starting to learn the intricacies of the salary cap.

“Whenever we’re trying to sign a guy or how much we can sign him for —what we can afford — a lot of [teammates] ask me,” Sowell said this week. “Because they know I have a good idea. Or I have an idea of who’s going to get replaced whenever someone comes in.”

That gets awkward, telling teammates if their jobs are at stake. But he’s always truthful.

“It’s kinda funny,” he said. “Especially at the draft, they always look at me to see where we’re going next.”

There’s a reason — Sowell is trying to prepare himself for his next job, whenever his playing days end. He wants to work somewhere in an NFL front office.

“Obviously, ultimately, you’d like to be the GM or one of the bigger guys,” he said. “I think I have a good eye for that kinda stuff. And I know how the business works.”

If he needs any further inspiration, he can always look across the dinner table during the holidays: David Stearns, the Milwaukee Brewers’ wunderkind general manager, is his brother-in-law.

Stearns became baseball’s youngest active GM four years ago — and the third-youngest ever — when he was hired at 30, the same age Sowell is now. Stearns inherited a 68-win team. Two years later, they won 86. After trading prospects for Marlins outfielder Christian Yelich last year, the Brewers won 96 games and lost to the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. Yelich was named the NL MVP.

“I think Bradley understands that there’s a whole other side of the industry that fascinates him,” said Stearns, whose wife, Whitney, is the older sister of Sowell’s wife, Jessica. “He’s certainly open to talking about it. I think he’s curious about how front offices may look at different problems or questions maybe a little differently than it’s looked at from a player’s perspective.

“I think he recognizes that. And when certain situations come up, he’s always eager to talk about it.”

Family gatherings are usually spent chasing their children around —the Sowells have two girls and a boy, and the Stearns family has a 9-month-old daughter. The benefit of being in the same business, Stearns said, is that both families understand no one works banker’s hours in the sports world. The perks are fun, though — Sowell went toMilwaukee for NLCS games, and Stearns has seen the Bears play at Lambeau Field.

The two sports require different approaches from their executives. But Stearns sees the similarities, too — he has toured the front offices of teams in other sports, looking for fresh ideas.

“He’s really open-minded to anything you run by him,” Sowell said.‘‘He takes it all in. I think that’s what makes him so good at his job.”

Sowell first got the front-office bug when he joined the Cardinals in2013. Reeling from a 5-11 season the year before that got their coach fired — sound familiar? — the Cardinals went 10-6, 11-5 and 13-3 in Sowell’s three years.

He learned how rewarding a turnaround could be.

“Wouldn’t it be really cool to be a part of that all the time?” Sowell said. “It sparked my interest.”

He got the same feeling last season, when the Bears went 12-4 in coach Matt Nagy’s first season. Sowell credited the work of general manager Ryan Pace and his staff.

“I honestly think it’s the greatest offseason turnaround, probably one of the best ever in sports,” he said. “We were 5-11 and with what seemed like no hope after that season.

“Pace goes out, and he hits a home run with the head coach. Just about every guy he signed was a key contributor to the team. Not only that, but he did well in the draft. . . . And you got [Khalil] Mack.”

Sowell has grown close with the Bears’ executives, asking how — and why — they did what they did.

“Always giving my opinion, whether they want it or not,” he said. “I believe in what they’re doing with the Bears. Seeing them turn around a team — you know they know how to do it. I’m always in their ear and always ask those questions.”

Stearns, who knows the thrill of building a team, sees the value of having a former player in the front office.

“I think that’s notable, it’s laudable,” he said. “Generally, players, after a long career, retire and go on to different pursuits. The fact that Bradley has interest in it and is curious about what that life would be like — is curious about what those responsibilities are — I think that’s a great first step.

“As he continues to learn about different facets of the front office,I think he’ll be able to navigate his way toward a segment of the front office that suits him well.”

Stearns was flying to baseball’s Winter Meetings in Las Vegas inDecember, hoping to get some work done on Wi-Fi, when he saw his brother-in-law trending on Twitter. Sowell caught a touchdown pass on a tackle-eligible play that Nagy dubbed “Santa’s Sleigh’’ and boogied in the end zone afterward. He’d practiced the dance with his two daughters in the team hotel.

Stearns knew Sowell could be used as an eligible receiver.

“But I don’t think anybody thought they’d throw him the ball,” he said.

It proved a preview of a position change. This offseason, the Bears asked Sowell to move from tackle to a blocking tight end position. Sowell, of course, already knew the Bears’ roster situation — they needed a “Y” tight end and “didn’t have the most cap space,” he said.

“If you could fill it from within,” Sowell said, “that would be a smart move for us.”

The 6-7 Sowell has lost weight — he’s down from 310 to 285 pounds, with a bit more to go — to prepare for his new role.

Stearns knows the challenges of a veteran changing positions, but also the benefits: The Brewers moved slugger Mike Moustakas to second base this year, a position he’d never played in the big leagues. He’s been one of their best players.

Maybe he’ll become one of Sowell’s favorites, too. He’s already used to getting funny looks from his Bears teammates when he wears Brewers gear in the locker room.

“When people ask,” Sowell said, “I tell them, ‘I support family.’ ”