Earlier this week the Chicago Bears conducted an interview with Kansas City Chiefs director of player personnel Ryan Poles. At the time it felt like a late addition at the last second. Somebody they just wanted to get a look at. It would appear things have changed. After reportedly crushing his interviews with the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings, the young executive has made a similar impression on the Bears. He is their first GM candidate to earn a second look.
The young man has risen through the NFL ranks fast. After joining the Bears as an undrafted free agent out of Boston College, he quickly realized he was never going to last as a player. So he transitioned to scouting, got a job in Kansas City, and earned promotions at a rapid pace despite working for three different regimes. He played a big role in the Chiefs’ construction of their Super Bowl-winning roster in 2019.
Chiefs’ executive director of player personnel Ryan Poles, one of two finalists for the Vikings’ GM job, now is being asked to interview a second time for the Bears’ GM job, per league source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 22, 2022
Told some people how much Bears loved him. Didn’t know it was this much. https://t.co/v8ssVkkKTg
— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) January 22, 2022
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Sounds like it’ll be the #Bears on Tuesday and the #Vikings on Wednesday for Ryan Poles — a finalist for both open NFC North GM jobs. https://t.co/TmiE6Lq4b1
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 22, 2022
As stated in the first article on him, the young executive has an impressive track record.
- Rodney Hudson
- Justin Houston
- Dontari Poe
- Eric Fisher
- Travis Kelce
- Dee Ford
- Marcus Peters
- Chris Jones
- Tyreek Hill
- Patrick Mahomes
- Creed Humphrey
- Trey Smith
All of those players were drafted when he had a strong presence in the front office as either a personnel director or director of college scouting. The fact it happened under multiple different GMs actually strengthens his case. For a team to continue drafting well despite changes at the top would indicate they were getting good advice from the man running their college scouting department.
The big question for many will be obvious. Who would Ryan Poles look to for a head coach if he does get the Bears job? Most will immediately connect him to Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, a man that many feel is long overdue for a shot. He also has ties to former Eagles head coach Doug Pederson and Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. A couple of intriguing names that could do good things with Justin Fields.
Poles is now a finalist for a GM job for the fourth time dating back to last season. The list includes the Panthers, Giants, Vikings, and now the Bears. A surefire sign the man knows how to convey a message and vision for a football team.
