Bears Mailbag -- Should Bears Really Get Rid Of Ryan Pace?

The Chicago Bears were dealt a bit of a deathblow to their 2021 season last Sunday.  The beat-up and desperate San Francisco 49ers came into Soldier Field and whipped the Bears in the second half to shock the Bears, 33-22.  It was Chicago's first game without head coach Matt Nagy, who sat out due to COVID-19 protocols.

The good news was QB Justin Fields looked good against a non-Detroit Lions team.  As the narratives (and goal posts) for the 2021 season shift with that 49ers loss, Fields' development is now front and center.  That's all that matters. Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy are certainly on the hottest seats imaginable.  The likelihood they return is low.  But they can still help themselves for the future if Fields develops by season-end, and that would also set the Bears up for future success. Last Sunday was a breath of fresh air in terms of progress. With that, let's reach into this week's Bears Mailbag.  Follow me on Twitter @DhruvKoul to continue the conversation.

Bears Mailbag

The reality is the McCaskeys love Ryan Pace.  They absolutely adore him.  They don't want to fire him (or Matt Nagy, for that matter).  But they may not have a choice on the latter. The former, though, there is a choice.  They can separate his role from general manager and elevate his title to overall VP or something of Football Operations.  Pace could then hire the GM who would then make a decision on the head coach, roster, salary cap, etc. It'd be the best of both worlds for the Bears -- fans get that layer of separation between Pace and direct control of the roster, and the McCaskeys get to keep Pace in town. Frankly, I would support that move.  The Bears need that level of separation anyway -- and a structure change in the way they're aligned in the organization.  Having Pace there would be a good thing. He's done great work with Halas Hall renovations, instituted a nutrition program that has kept the Bears relatively healthy the last few seasons, and in general improved from a football personnel standpoint. He has value -- and it would make sense to elevate him. We'll see if that's what the McCaskeys decide to do.