Bears general manager Ryan Poles listens to reporters during a news conference earlier this month at Halas Hall in Lake Forest.
AP
Sometimes the writing is on the wall, other times it spews like a leaky faucet.
Within the past week or so, a couple of leaks involving Bears general manager Ryan Poles have wafted beyond the walls of Halas Hall. One was about how Poles might not have taken the job had he known he’d end up reporting to team president Kevin Warren. Anther one designed to discredit Poles suggested the Colts might have fired Matt Eberflus as defensive coordinator had he not been hired to coach the Bears in 2022.
True, false or a little of both, these are the type of things that suggest a dysfunctional front office and a power struggle to win public opinion. None of this is surprising, given the Bears’ miserable results under McCaskey family stewardship.
The scapegoats have been sacrificed rapid-fire this season. First it was offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, then Eberflus. Interim coach Thomas Brown had a chance to calm the waves, but they’ve only grown more threatening and Poles might be the next to go.
The Bears need to pause and think about this nonstop circle of misery they’ve been riding since the end of the Mike Ditka era in 1992. The coaches change, the players change, but the results rarely do.
So rather than automatically assuming firing Poles will turn the Bears around — News flash: it probably won’t help — let’s at least examine his track record. Three years is short run by GM standards.
Criteria 1: Hiring the right people
This part hasn’t gone well, since Poles chose Eberflus as head coach and had a say in hiring Waldron as OC. During the past 30 years, though, the Bears have made just one good head coach hire in Lovie Smith.
They also fired Smith after he went 10-6 in 2012. If grading on the curve of Bears history, you can’t fault Poles for one wrong hire. That stuff happens all the time in Lake Forest.
Criteria 2: Draft
This is probably the most important task of an NFL front office, and the Bears are still reeling from seven years of bad drafts by previous GM Ryan Pace.
The first Poles draft was 2022 and he actually got off to a great start, choosing Kyler Gordon and Jaquon Brisker with his first two picks, both in the second round. Reminder: The worst Bears mistake this season was letting Brisker stay in the game after a brutal helmet-to-helmet hit against Carolina. The safety has been sidelined ever since.
The rest of that draft isn’t looking great. Velus Jones is gone, Braxton Jones made an impressive rise from fifth-round pick to starting left tackle, but still doesn’t look cut out for that job. The rest of that class has one pleasant surprise in DB Elijah Hicks.
In 2023, Poles made offensive tackle Darnell Wright his initial first-round pick, but he’s basically been the same as Jones, but on the right side. Both are better at run-blocking than pass protection. The second round again went well, with defensive tackle Gervon Dexter and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, depending on how you feel about Stevenson’s high-profile gaffe in the Washington game. The rest of this class hasn’t produced any starters.
This year’s draft started with Caleb Williams at No. 1 and the jury’s out on everyone else. Wide receiver Rome Odunze has been a little disappointing, but receivers can take time to develop. Third-round pick Kiran Amegadjie showed Monday he’s clearly not a left tackle.
Some good picks here for sure, but Poles has earned probably a C grade so far.
Criteria 3: Trades and free-agency
The players that stand out here are defensive end Montez Sweat, who would be really good if he had more help on the defensive line; linebacker T.J. Edwards, whose production has far exceeded his price tag; and wide receiver D.J. Moore was a nice get from Carolina for last year’s No. 1 overall pick.
The biggest miss in free-agency was guard Nate Davis, who was cut a few weeks ago. Defensive end DeMarcus Walker hasn’t played well enough to justify being the sixth-highest paid player on the roster. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is a nice player, but Poles spent way too much here, especially since Edwards has been better at one-third the price.
Cutting David Montgomery wasn’t a great move. Refusing to pay Roquan Smith, then spending a ton to sign Edmunds made no sense. Trading a second-round pick for wide receiver Chase Claypool was comically bad.
Keenan Allen has been good, but is probably one-and-done with the Bears. Besides Edwards, Poles’ best free-agent addition was probably nose tackle Andrew Billings, a player the defense sorely misses.
So, there’s the evidence. Without question, Poles has plenty of room to improve.
The biggest problem here is the same as always: If the Bears decide to fire Poles, who’s in charge of hiring the replacement? And that’s why the circle of doom keeps spinning.