Ryan Poles survived what could’ve been his downfall. Matt Eberflus reached a disastrous end as head coach. Nate Davis was cut midseason. Caleb Williams was sacked 67 times. It was a complete fiasco, and much of the blame fell at the feet of the Chicago Bears GM. Despite this, ownership decided to give him another chance. They felt he’d done enough over the past three years to justify seeing this thing through. That meant finding a new head coach and shoring up the more problematic areas of the roster.
Poles got to work immediately, hiring Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to take over the team, a massive coup in the eyes of many. He should be an immediate help for Williams. Next is figuring out how to fix the offensive line, and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN has heard from people around the NFL about what they think happens. Expect Poles to make a push to land free agency’s top offensive lineman.
The NFL team executives, scouts and personnel figures ESPN spoke to in recent days have thoughts about the biggest storylines:
Bears will sign Trey Smith in free agency
Chicago is all-in on improving its offense with the hiring of Ben Johnson as head coach. High on general manager Ryan Poles’ list of improvements will be an underachieving offensive line. Chiefs free agent guard Trey Smith could be an immediate fit.
“They need help there at guard after the Nate Davis fiasco, and Trey is far and away the best option,” an NFL personnel evaluator said. “And they probably need more than him.”
Ryan Poles has a clear path and an advantage.
Fixing the interior offensive line is the obvious course for Chicago. It was the primary reason the blocking fell apart last season. Smith is a Pro Bowler and exactly what they need. Ryan Poles also played a pivotal role in drafting him. He was in Kansas City as director of player personnel in 2021 when they took the Tennessee guard in the 6th round. That connection, along with the presence of Johnson, Williams, and a fat contract, are sure to convince the 26-year-old that he can continue his successful career here. There will be competition. Plenty of other teams have money to spend and major needs on the offensive line. Poles must be prepared to make the strongest possible pitch. Money can’t be an object. Not this time.
For the fifth time, are you telling me the mighty Bears cannot find two guards to play quality football? It’s year four now, try harder. Look better. They have to be out there somewhere at a decent cost. Then develop them quickly. Hell, if I had respected the position more, I would have fattened up my sons to play like wild boars and earn some easy money.
We should be glad too that Mrs. Johnson did not want to raise her children in Vegas, would you? Plus, when they get older, the kids can be educated at the University of Chicago for a top-notch education for elite wealthy conservative off-spring.
If BJ brings his OL coach and maybe he is a good one, the players do not come with. Taylor Decker- pick 16, Frank Ragnow- pick 20, Penei Sewell- pick 7, Kevin Zeitler- pick 27, Graham Glasgow- pick 95. Coaching can help but look at the pedigree of that line. Let’s protect our franchise QB with some studs for a change, I’ve had enough bargain bin “coach em up” guys.
Also Ben implied that C-Mo is as good as gone. That’s a great start.
If Poles is true to form, then he will sit down with the scouting staff and evaluate all possible OG candidates (draft, FA, trade), and then sit down with Ben and the offensive staff and set spending caps and priority lists. If the bidding for Smith gets too high, the Bears will bow out and move on to the next player on the list. Personally, at this point I’d expect Poles to be more judicious with the FA money. He has said that he believes in building through the draft; the most common FA strategy is to position one’s team… Read more »