One thing people can't seem to agree on is what the job status is of Ryan Pace. The man has held the GM position for the Chicago Bears since 2015. Most of that time ownership has expressed the utmost confidence in him. They praise his preparation, his intelligence, and his willingness to do whatever is necessary to build a winner. To be fair the man certainly has his high points.
His construction of the Bears defense deserves the utmost respect. It was one of the worst units in franchise history when he took over. In the space of four offseasons, it became the #1 defense in the NFL and has finished top 5 for two-straight seasons. That is some damn impressive work. It's nice to see Pace at least uphold that longstanding tradition.
The problem is he's also fallen into a similar pitfall that has devoured prior GMs. His inability to build a functional offense. Punctuated by his failure to find a viable quarterback. Some wonder if he's really on the hot seat or not. To Hall of Fame executive Gil Brandt? There isn't much question about that.
"In a perfect world, competition from Foles will bring out the best in former No. 2 overall pick Mitchell Trubisky. If Foles wins the starting quarterback job, the Bears will be counting on him to regain the form that led to playoff and Super Bowl success as a backup with the Eagles in 2017 and '18 after floundering in Jacksonville last year. Regardless of who is under center, head coach Matt Nagy and general manager Ryan Pace will need more production from an offense that ranked 25th in passing, 27th in rushing and 29th in scoring if they are to get off the hot seat."
Did Ryan Pace do enough to help his offense?
It's a fair question. Looking around the league, most agree the two best moves he made this offseason were on defense. Pace received lots of praise for acquiring pass rusher Robert Quinn who should help free up Khalil Mack. Also, 2nd round pick Jaylon Johnson was most often called the best selection in he made in the draft. Johnson is a cornerback. All the offensive moves of note? Nothing but question marks.
His trade for Nick Foles was called too expensive. The same goes for his signing of 34-year old tight end Jimmy Graham. Cole Kmet, their top draft choice, has concerns surrounding his overall ceiling and lack of experience from Notre Dame. On top of all that, he really didn't invest a ton in the offensive line. His most notable move was signing former Seahawks starter Germain Ifedi with a plan to move him to guard. Pace is clearly leaning a lot on the hope a revamped coaching staff led by Matt Nagy gets more out of the players already present.
That is a dangerous gamble. Especially with a drastically reduced offseason to prepare. This could very well be his last stand.
