Ryan Poles managed to hide behind Matt Eberflus throughout the Chicago Bears‘ downhill slide all season. Undoubtedly the GM hopes a fresh voice at head coach after Eberflus was fired might finally push the team into the win column. That hasn’t happened. In fact, it has made the Bears worse, especially on defense. There is no escaping responsibility for Poles. This mess is his making, from top to bottom. There was no meddling from ownership or team president Kevin Warren. He had free reign to build this thing his way and it’s been a disaster.
Sunday’s 34-17 loss to the Detroit Lions might have seemed inconsequential in the big picture, but not from Poles’ perspective. It was a disaster for several reasons. Let’s start with the most obvious. That defeat was the Bears’ ninth in a row, the second-longest streak in franchise history. The longest is 14 games, which took place between 2022 and 2023. Poles was the GM during both.
It only gets worse from there. Kiran Amegadjie, Poles’ prized 3rd round pick this year, was declared a healthy scratch for the game. Larry Borom and Jake Curhan were considered better options than him. Curhan made some crippling mistakes when he got into the game. Then, just for good measure, Braxton Jones broke his leg.
“This is the deepest room I’ve ever been a part of.’ So we have more versatility, more depth. Shoot, we have 10 guys, so I feel comfortable. Obviously, you want your starting five to be healthy and ready to go, but I feel more confident in the depth of our offensive line than I ever have before.”
Everybody talks about Nate Davis and the disaster he was. It might be time to point out that D’Andre Swift, while not nearly as big of a fiasco, has also been a disappointment. He signed a $24 million contract with the Bears this spring. With the final whistle on Sunday, it was the tenth game this season where he averaged less than four yards per carry. It was the fifth game where he averaged under three yards per carry. Williams has almost half of his rushing total despite a third of the carries.
Ryan Poles didn’t have a bad plan. He wanted to build through the draft, be measured in free agency, protect the team finances, and always maintain a good supply of resources. The problem is for any plan to work, you still must find good players and coaches. The GM failed spectacularly in the former and too much in the latter. His excuses have run dry. If he survives the end of this season, it won’t be because he earned it. Only the good graces of George McCaskey will preserve him.
