Evidence Keeps Mounting That Ryan Poles Is Damn Good At His Job

Even as the discussions around Matt Eberflus and Justin Fields remain ongoing, one person in the Chicago Bears organization no longer getting heat is Ryan Poles. The young GM deserves some blame for hiring Eberflus, but nobody can deny that he has done a stellar job refilling the team’s talent pool. Monday night in Minnesota was one of the best showcases yet for several of his draft picks. Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker both had interceptions. Roschon Johnson had 75 yards from scrimmage and a highlight block in pass protection. Gervon Dexter created havoc as an interior pass rusher, and Darnell Wright more than held his own against Danielle Hunter.

This doesn’t even include D.J. Moore going for 114 yards and Montez Sweat notching 1.5 sacks. Both were trade acquisitions this year. It is hard to ignore what the Bears are building. Several young additions are starting to blossom. It serves as a strong indication that Poles has a good eye for talent. The Bears are 4-4 in their last eight games. Sure, it hasn’t always been pretty, but it feels like the team is trending in the right direction. Not only that, but the GM may have set the team up for another top-3 pick next spring, thanks to the trade with Carolina.

Ryan Poles’ vision for the Bears is coming into focus.

Multiple times this season, it’s become evident Chicago is the more physical team on both sides of the ball. Washington, Las Vegas, and Detroit were the clearest examples of this. Poles has completely transformed the Bears in the trenches. Their once-passive nature is a thing of the past. Guys like Wright, Teven Jenkins, and Braxton Jones get after people in the run game. Dexter, Sweat, and DeMarcus Walker love mixing it up on defense. This, in turn, has allowed skill position players to reap the rewards.

What makes Ryan Poles’ work so encouraging is he’s managed to do all of this while still maintaining a healthy pool of resources. He has two projected top-5 picks in the 2024 draft and over $80 million in salary cap space. Compare this to Ryan Pace, who constantly gave up multiple future picks for aggressive moves up the draft board or gave up large free agent contracts. Poles looks and feels like a GM who knows how to manage his resources without being reckless.

If he can produce one more off-season like the one he pieced together in 2023, the Bears could be a playoff team next season.