Things came together remarkably fast. Everybody thought the Chicago Bears were meandering in the wilderness with no plan, meeting 17 head coaching candidates hoping to stumble onto their solution. In reality, GM Ryan Poles and his search team were merely biding their time until the guy they wanted was available. Just 24 hours after Ben Johnson and his Detroit Lions were eliminated from the playoffs, Chicago held an in-person interview with Tennessee State head coach Eddie George. This satisfied the Rooney Rule. Another 24 hours after that, Johnson agreed to a contract. Many don’t know that Poles got a major assist in closing the deal from George McCaskey, of all people.
Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog was on top of this process from the beginning. He confirmed last week that Johnson and Poles seemed to hit it off during the interview. The coach liked a lot of what he was hearing about the situation. However, he had one concern. He wanted assurances that McCaskey and team president Kevin Warren wouldn’t meddle in football decisions. McCaskey agreed. Once that happened, everything else came together.
George McCaskey deserves credit for this.
For all the criticisms he gets as owner of the Bears, there is one thing he’s always been good about. That is staying out of the way of his football people. In the past 15 years, there has never been an indication that he meddles in such things. His goal has always been to hire a GM and a head coach and let them run the show. The team president handles the business side of things. Johnson’s request didn’t require any sacrifices from ownership. It merely asked him to do what he’s already done for years.
The key part will be making sure Warren doesn’t overstep. He has a reputation for sticking his nose into everything. That is not to say he interferes, but it’s something coaches get nervous about. Johnson wants this to be a partnership between him and Poles. Less cooks in the kitchen. George McCaskey at least understands that much. His lack of ego served the Bears perfectly right when they needed it to. Maybe, just maybe, this is the elusive home run he’s been waiting for.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
