Ryan Pace did a lot of things right in Chicago. Sadly the Bears GM just got too many of the big decisions wrong. He drafted Mitch Trubisky over Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes. He kept John Fox one year too long and then replaced him with Matt Nagy. These are big reasons why his teams will be just 1-of-6 in playoff appearances. Expectations are he’ll lose his job come next month. Then the search begins for his replacement. One of the names that should top the list is Rick Smith.
It’s not every day you find a guy with 11 years of GM experience who is still just 50-years old. Smith ran the show for the Houston Texans from 2006 to 2017. Before that he was actually an assistant coach in the NFL, helping the Denver Broncos win the Super Bowl in 1997 and 1998. So he’s a rare commodity in that he sees the game from both a coaching and scouting perspective.
That certainly shows in his track record.
Smith was among the most steady producers of top talent out of the draft during that time period. Here is a list of his most notable picks:
- Mario Williams
- Owen Daniels
- Duane Brown
- Conor Barwin
- Glover Quin
- J.J. Watt
- Brandon Brooks
- DeAndre Hopkins
- Jadeveon Clowney
- Deshaun Watson
This isn’t counting some of his great undrafted free agents finds either like Arian Foster and A.J. Bouye. The man has a terrific eye for talent. It isn’t hard to understand why his teams finished 8-8 or better eight times and made the playoffs four times. Him being forced out in 2017 due to the cancer diagnosis of his wife was a tragedy. One the Texans are paying for even today.
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Rick Smith is everything the Bears could want
He’s highly experienced and also has roots in the Midwest, having attended Purdue University. Barely a two-hour drive from Chicago. He’s not too old and is familiar on how to deal with an ownership that isn’t the most football-savvy. He knows how to run football operations effectively and build a competitive roster.
On top of that, he’s demonstrated he can pinpoint a franchise quarterback. It took him a long time to actually take a swing, but drafting Watson proves it. One also shouldn’t discount his trade for Matt Schaub in 2007. He went on to become a two-time Pro Bowler. Rick Smith has credentials that few other candidates can boast.
The best part is? He’ll be coming in with a chip on his shoulder.
There can be little question the man isn’t happy about how things ended in Houston. It was humiliating on both a professional and personal level. The team let him down in his darkest hour. So it isn’t hard to believe he’ll be going into his next job with something to prove. To show the Texans they made a huge mistake letting him walk.
The Bears are searching for somebody who can build an identity for their team. Somebody who can hit on his 1st round picks and most important find them a quarterback. Smith checked all of those boxes.