The firing of Lamar Campbell by the Chicago Bears shouldn’t have been newsworthy. Directors of Player Engagement don’t get that kind of headline attention. What made it unique compared to other such situations is that Campbell played a key role in the Bears hiring GM Ryan Poles. He was part of the five-person search committee put together by Chairman George McCaskey to conduct the search.
Under normal circumstances, one would think that meant Campbell was safe in his job post regardless of who the next GM would be. That proved incorrect. Thus people were left to question what changed. Maybe he and Poles had a falling out. Maybe Campbell somehow got in trouble off the field, and the Bears were trying to push him out the door quietly. Insider Adam Hoge of CHGO.com collected information on the subject and revealed what he’s heard on Parkins & Spiegal for 670 The Score.
“The first time the possibility of Soup Campbell not being retained under the new general manager, the first time that was ever brought up as a possibility to me, was the Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus were introduced at Halas Hall back in late January. Mind understand at the time, mind you they don’t really know each other at that point other than the interview process…that being said, I think it was also clearly communicated from Ryan Poles’ side that this was a guy that was going to come in and want to hire his people. The Bears were willing to do that.”
LaMarr Campbell wasn’t Poles’ guy. It was that simple.
McCaskey said that his new GM would have total control of the football operations from the start. Any changes he wanted to make had the full backing of ownership. While the family respects Campbell for the great work he did as a player rep, the reality is Poles saw him as a holdover from the last regime. He wanted to cut loose every trace of Ryan Pace he could. Several members of the front office and scouting department were already out.
LaMarr Campbell was merely the latest victim. It became bigger news because the executive had a hand in Poles’ hiring. This situation sends a clear enough message that the new GM isn’t in the business of owing favors. In his mind, Campbell wasn’t what the Bears needed at that job. So he made a change. Mike Wiley Jr. now takes over as the new director of player development and mental skills. He has worked at multiple colleges as a de facto sports psychologist.
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Ok so you understand that he wants his own people in the organization and then you have a problem with putting someone in that position??? You’re talking out of both sides of your neck! Oh!! And the whole entire team is all up in arms! Boy! You guys are so goddamn dramatic! There was less than 30% of the players left on this team from last year when they fired this guy. And who in the hell gives a damn about what Khalil Mack thinks about the hiring and firing on this team he’s no longer playing here! His ass… Read more »
I get that Poles wants his own guys, and that Soup’s replacement will be performing a different function, but it was still “A CLASSLESS ACT” to fire the guy while on vacation with his family. No excuse for that. Believe me, people within the Bears organization and the players will not forget the way that Soup’s termination was handled. If you want to build a great culture, you just don’t treat people like that.
“Maybe Campbell somehow got in trouble off the field” why and how did you come to this conclusion oh let me guess
The problem here is that the press is looking for a sledge hammer when the “murder weapon” is a scalpel.
Look at the job titles and forget the individuals. Ryan Poles replaced the “director of player engagement” with the “director of player development and mental skills”.
This is a change in philosophy, not an attack on how Soup Campbell did his job. Poles had a different vision for the position, and as a result hired a different guy to do a different job.
Opinions about Soup, and whether he should have stayed or not are second guessing Poles leadership. Poles wants to create a new attitude and vision for the team so the former needs to be removed.