Nobody wanted to admit it at first, but plenty of people probably at least had the thought. Once Kevin Warren became the new Chicago Bears team president this past January, some wondered if he might have designs on organizational changes. It would’ve sounded crazy at the time. GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus had only been in charge for a year. They needed time to realize their vision. However, one fact remained impossible to argue. Warren had no say in his hiring. Anybody with business knowledge understands that when a new person takes over a company, they often desire to bring in their own people.
Albert Breer of The MMQB has suggested this is very much a possibility. He believes Warren wants to make changes to the football operations, aiming to bring in people he trusts and to become more involved himself. Others have suggested as much. Adam Jahns of The Athletic said there is a significant buzz around the NFL that the Bears will clean house. Now, his colleague Kevin Fishbain alluded to the same thing. He believes a strong possibility exists that Warren will purge everything, including GM Ryan Poles.
After all that has happened this year, nobody is safe.
“It’s important to remember that Warren is evaluating everything in the building. The general manager is very much in that evaluation. It comes down to the confidence Warren will have in Poles being the one to guide the Bears out of this as they enter an offseason with an abundance of resources. If the Bears are going to draft a quarterback, should Poles be the one to do it? If the Bears are going to hire a new head coach, should Poles be the one to do it? The lack of success on the field, and some drama off it, could certainly create a scenario in which Warren decides to start over completely.
We often talk about a GM wanting to draft his own quarterback. I imagine it’s similar to a team president and the person directly below him in the organizational flow chart.”
Kevin Warren already has a strong enough case.
Matt Eberflus is a slam dunk. He has the worst winning percentage of any Bears head coach in history through 28 games. His defense still isn’t good. The only reputation this team has built under his watch is one for 4th quarter collapses. Poles is a tougher argument. He’s added some good players through his first two off-seasons. The Bears are younger, tougher, and more athletic. At the same time, Poles can’t hide from some ugly mistakes. He hired Eberflus as head coach. The trade for Chase Claypool was a disaster. Last but not least, he chose to trade the #1 pick rather than take quarterback C.J. Stroud, who is thriving in Houston.
For all his solid moves, the roster still isn’t winning games and lacks star powers. That falls at the feet of the GM. Poles has done enough to stay under typical circumstances. Unfortunately, this situation with the Bears is anything but typical. Kevin Warren did not hire him. George McCaskey has given him full authority to run the team. If he feels this power structure won’t bring the organization a championship, he can change it. Unless the Bears can string together some wins down the stretch, that is precisely what may happen.
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