Ryan Poles knew what needed to happen when he took over the Chicago Bears in 2022. The roster was old, expensive, and nowhere close to competing for a championship. If the new GM wanted to change that, he'd have to bite the bullet. That meant unloading everything that wasn't nailed down and starting from scratch. The only way to make this team competitive was by building a strong foundation of young, cheap talent and helping them grow. That meant stocking draft picks and using them. No more trading them away in expensive bold moves like Ryan Pace did.
Everybody remembers his words at the opening press conference that year. They're seared into the brains of Bears fans across the country.
“What am I about and what’s my philosophy? We’re gonna build through the draft. We’re gonna acquire young, fast and physical football players. We’re gonna be selective through free agency. And we’re gonna connect evaluation with valuation. We’re gonna have a relentless approach to fix our weaknesses. We’re gonna make … great self-awareness of who we are. We’re gonna solve problems with open communication and candor. And we’re gonna consistently put players in positions to succeed."
Four years later, those words come across as nothing more than fancy lip service. Poles failed to keep his word in every regard. Rumors are that he doesn't operate with open communication or candor. He hasn't been "selective" in free agency and hasn't fixed the team's weaknesses. Worst of all, he hasn't built through the draft. A new graphic showing how many homegrown players each organization has on its roster says it all.
Ryan Poles has fallen into the same trap as his predecessors.
As of the time of writing, 29 players on the current roster did not start their careers with the Bears. Ryan Poles has drafted 34 players to date. Ten of them are no longer on the team. Another 15 are backups. Only nine are current unquestioned starters. None of those nine have made a Pro Bowl. While there is a strong possibility these numbers will change in the near future as several current picks mature, the fact is Poles has not put together a strong enough roster despite four drafts and 11 picks in the 1st and 2nd rounds.
This is not a man who has operated with limited resources. He's had more than enough swings to put together a competitive team. Pace ran into the same problem. The only reason it didn't show sooner was that he managed to score some high-quality veterans, such as Akiem Hicks and Khalil Mack, to fortify the defense. Poles has not been nearly as fortunate. His lone saving grace right now is the maturation of Caleb Williams at quarterback. That is his only lifeline, and in all honesty, it shouldn't be enough to justify keeping his job.
