The Chicago Bears have worked hard on their roster over the past three months. Almost every major need was addressed to some extent. However, one position didn’t get the attention many had hoped for or expected. Running back felt like an obvious focus for the Bears. New head coach Ben Johnson likes to run the ball on offense. His backfield in Detroit was loaded. It made sense to get him a true workhorse to pair with D’Andre Swift. Unfortunately, circumstances didn’t break their way. The only notable addition was 7th round pick Kyle Monangai.
Such an outcome led to immediate speculation that GM Ryan Poles might go hunting for a veteran option on the free agent market. The name everybody talked about was Nick Chubb. A four-time Pro Bowler in Cleveland, his former team had made his exit inevitable with two running backs selected in the draft. While he hasn’t been the same player he was a few years ago, some feel he still has some gas in the tank now that he’s healthy. Alas, the Bears proved too slow to act on that option.
The Chicago Bears will have to look for other options.
Remember, it hasn’t been decided whether the team will add a veteran. Insiders close to the team have said the Chicago Bears brass want to see what they have first with the current lineup. If Swift, Johnson, and Monangai looked solid in OTAs and minicamps, then there won’t be any need to add another body. That said, they’d better reach a conclusion sooner rather than later. It feels like the prominent options left on the market are starting to circle the drain. Chubb is off the board. J.K. Dobbins recently met with the Denver Broncos. The only other notable name left is Jamaal Williams. While he was great in Detroit three years ago, he’s been a non-factor the past two seasons. It feels like if the Bears don’t make a move within the next week or two, they are unlikely to do so at all.
“Dan Quinn withdrew his name from consideration for the Chicago Bears head coach position on January 27, 2022. He was one of the finalists for the position. On that same day, the Bears announced they were hiring Matt Eberflus as their new head coach.” — Anonymous
But nice try, @BearDownTX.
TGena – again with the revisionist history. Because if you actually knew what you were talking about, Poles only had two choices. Eberflus and Caldwell. Quinn had already pulled his name from the list by the time Poles was able to make a choice. And sorry, no one, not even you, can make a choice like HC with only 3 days on the job. There was not ample time to do interviews, backgrounds, etc, etc in order to make that decision. Poles was in a lose-lose situation, and likely was told that Eberflus was the choice.
I swear we have closet Packer fans in here.
While there are many reasons why HC Ben and his competent crew will “lift” the Bears – some of those same opportunities (likevacquiring a solid head coach and allowing him to select a competent crew, etc.) were squandered by Ryan Poles back in January of 2022. If you remember, at that time, GM Ryan Poles selected Matt Eberflus from among the three “vetted” candidates who were presented to the rookie GM, according to since published reports Rather than diligently .conduct his own search — the “rookie GM” took Eberflus — as the first of many of his impulsive moves that… Read more »
Tgena just think where Poles would be now if it weren’t for incompetent HC Eberflus. If HC Johnson could lift him up, HC Eberflus could pull him down. It works both ways.