Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles is at a pivotal juncture in his tenure with the team.
Since his appointment in January of 2022, Poles has been instrumental in reshaping the team’s roster. His time has been marked by both bold and questionable moves, but unfortunately for the Bears and their fans, not a ton of winning.
The Bears are 15-36 in his three years as the team’s GM, and president Kevin Warren has stood by him even after the team fired former head coach Matt Eberflus. Well, sort of.
Poles initially hired Eberflus, and there is confusion surrounding the GM’s contract — partly because neither Poles nor Warren will confirm the length of it, and partly due to the disparity in contract lengths between Poles and Eberflus. When asked at his year-end presser on January 7 if Poles would be around for the long term, Warren’s answer was clear as mud.
“I mean, there are a lot of assumptions in your question,” Warren replied. “When we say ‘long term’ you know, a year is a lifetime. And I know that’s important. And I know that 2025 is important, not only from a football standpoint, but from a stadium standpoint, from an operations standpoint. Again, I trust Ryan. I trust the process that he has put together. I’m confident that it will yield positive results.”
Ryan Poles Won’t Discuss His Current or Future Contract
Poles isn’t exactly being open about his future with the team, either.
“I’ve said from the day I’ve been hired, I’m not going to get into my contract,” Poles said. “I just think it’s a very personal thing in terms of how much I’m making and how long I’m making it.”
According to Bears insider Adam Jahns of The Athletic, while Poles and Eberflus were both hired in early 2022, Eberflus received a five-year deal, while Poles was given a four-year contract set to expire after the 2025 season.
With Poles entering what appears to be the final year of his contract, potential coaching candidates might be hesitant to join a team where the general manager’s future is uncertain. Neither Warren nor team chairman George McCaskey seem concerned about that, but perhaps they should be.
Poles did say that his contact situation won’t be kept from prospective coaching candidates, however.
“The candidates that we talk to, that’ll be something that I can address with them,” he added.
Ryan Poles Addresses Rumors of Discord Between Himself & Kevin Warren
Reports of a disconnect between Poles and Warren stemmed from a report courtesy of “Waddle & Silvy’s” Marc Silverman, who suggested that Poles was initially attracted to the Bears’ general manager position because it involved direct reporting to McCaskey. The subsequent hiring of Warren as team president introduced an additional layer of management, which Poles may have found frustrating.
Poles denies any issues with Warren, though.
“I do want to address some of the things that I’ve heard about the relationship between Kevin and I that couldn’t be further from the truth,” he said.
“We spend almost every single day together talking to him about solutions and direction of where we want to be and where we’re going to go. It is so far from the truth, it was a little disappointing to hear that, to be honest. We do have the strong core that we’re going to get with the right staff and make things happen.”
The forthcoming season will be critical for Poles. He’ll need to demonstrate both strong vision and leadership, and with the search for a new head coach underway and a roster infused with young talent, the decisions made in the coming months will be pivotal in determining the trajectory of the franchise.
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