Nobody would've thought tight end Cole Kmet would be somebody who expresses deep frustration with teammates in public. However, circumstances seem to have forced his hand. A couple of months ago, he suggested with little subtlety that too many players in the locker room weren't taking practice seriously enough amidst the Chicago Bears' losing streak. Nothing has changed over the final stretch to dispute such a claim. If anything, it has only reinforced what he said.
Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune spoke to players in the locker room about their thoughts on who the next head coach should be. While no names were mentioned, there was certainly a common theme. Accountability was brought up a few times, as was discipline. However, it was Kmet who went the deepest of all. He went so far as to say the coaches weren't the only problem. He believes a lot of the players added to the locker room by GM Ryan Poles are toxic and unable or unwilling to maintain a winning standard.
It was pretty blunt.
“We need a culture shift for sure,” Kmet said without hesitating. “And I know a lot of people get caught up in wanting this hot name or that hot name. But I would hope that management upstairs would just be looking for the best possible head coach.”
That coach, Kmet believes, should have an immediate understanding of how to raise the bar inside Halas Hall, how to establish standards and expectations and make certain everyone involved upholds them.
No questions asked. No wiggle room allowed.
“It’s about command over the locker room,” Kmet added. “It’s setting a line, then finding the guys who will hold that line and then depending on those guys who are holding the line to establish (an environment) where everyone else falls in line.
“But you want that line to be set first by the head coach. Then you find the players in the locker room who will uphold that.”
Cole Kmet, fair or not, points out something important.
Yes, the coaching staff failed at their job. However, it also falls on the players to police themselves to a degree. This season is an ugly reminder that the locker room culture isn't nearly as strong as Poles wanted everybody to think. One of the reasons those teams of the mid-2000s were so good was because they had a core of undeniable leaders like Olin Kreutz, Brian Urlacher, Mike Brown, Charles Tillman, and Lance Briggs. Not only were they good on the field, but they were willing to challenge others in the locker room when they weren't pulling their weight.
Jaylon Johnson and Cole Kmet seem to be the only two who have been vocal enough to raise such concerns. Nobody else has stepped up. Caleb Williams is a rookie. He isn't yet in a position to say such things. Look at Poles' draft picks in recent years and ask where the leaders are. Jaquan Brisker might be the only name to pop up, and he's been out for months with his concussion issue. Kyler Gordon? Darnell Wright? Gervon Dexter? All have played well but don't seem interested in seizing a greater leadership role.
This is a failure at the top.
