Kevin Warren joined the team in January and took over as president in April. Everyone assumed he was only hired to build a new stadium for the Chicago Bears. True, but that is only part of the story. Warren was clearly a serious power broker in Halas Hall, according to George McCaskey. Everyone in the building, including GM Ryan Poles, would report to him. Warren has steadily evaluated every level of the Bears operation in the months since. He’s working hard to understand how the organization works and where changes might be necessary.
Football operations are included. He had no say in Poles’ or head coach Matt Eberflus’ hiring. As the team sits at 4-8 with some ugly moments over the last few months, there is an undercurrent of hope that things will improve. What is unclear is how far they can go. Eberflus has the hot seat, but some believe Poles is also in danger. Windy City Gridiron’s Bill Zimmerman spoke with Bears insider Brad Biggs about the situation. According to what he’s learned, the young GM isn’t going anywhere.
Ryan Poles appears to have made a favorable impression.
That comes as no surprise. On the field, there is evidence. Several of his new acquisitions, particularly D.J. Moore and Montez Sweat, have performed admirably down the stretch. The two big trade additions are on track to make the Pro Bowl and have helped the team become more competitive recently. Furthermore, several of the Poles’ draft picks are beginning to blossom. Tyrique Stevenson, Jaquan Brisker, Kyler Gordon, Braxton Jones, Darnell Wright, and Jaquan Brisker all appear to be capable starters. Gervon Dexter and Terell Smith have also shown significant promise.
“BASED ON WHAT I’VE SEEN AND HEARD, RYAN POLES AND KEVIN WARREN HAVE A STRONG WORKING RELATIONSHIP THAT IS LIKELY STILL DEVELOPING.” KEVIN HAS NOT BEEN IN THE BUILDING FOR LONG. HE WAS HIRED IN JANUARY BUT DID NOT START WORK UNTIL APRIL, RIGHT? SO I THINK THEY MAY HAVE HIT IT OFF TO BEGIN WITH…POLES WOULD BE OKAY IN MY OPINION. THIS IS MORE THAN OKAY. I THINK POLES IS RIGHT NOW ON SOLID GROUND WITH KEVIN WARREN AND GEORGE MCCASKEY.”
The team appears to be heading in the right direction. They could be one strong offseason away from making the playoffs. Much depends on whether they can find some consistency at quarterback and hire a good head coach. Eberflus could save himself with a few wins down the stretch, but all signs point to him being in trouble. Whatever happens, Ryan Poles will be involved in the important decisions. He passed his exam. He’ll almost certainly start looking for a new quarterback. Warren could also assist him in his search for a new coach.
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