Ryan Pace has plenty of critics. Both in Chicago Bears fandom and the media. Many consider him a fool way out of his depth. A man who lacks any semblance of imagination or a cohesive plan. Is this true? Not entirely. Pace has operated this offseason with a clear agenda in mind. The problem is what he’s done to this point isn’t enough to matter.
Think about this next question honestly. Are the Bears a better football team in any way right now? One could argue they made a slight improvement at quarterback with Andy Dalton. Not enough to truly move the needle though. No changes have been made to the offensive line, wide receiver, or tight end though. Depth was improved slightly at running back.
Defensively it looks considerably worse.
The front seven appears to be in good shape with Akiem Hicks staying put. Depth was improved at inside and outside linebacker thanks to the arrivals of Christian Jones and Jeremiah Attaochu. It’s the secondary though that is a major concern. Pace swapped Kyle Fuller for Desmond Trufant. A clear downgrade. They also still don’t have a starting safety next to Eddie Jackson following the departure of Tashaun Gipson.
So are the Bears better? No. Either they’re basically the same in terms of roster strength as when the offseason began or maybe a bit worse. This offseason has not yielded positive results for Pace thus far. That in turn is putting more and more pressure on him and the Bears scouting department to deliver something big in the NFL draft.
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Given where they’re picking this year? That is dangerous living.
Ryan Pace needs a repeat performance of 2020
Now there is still time. A full month remains before the start of the draft. Chicago could somehow pull off a move that secures them a true difference-maker. Then again, everything they’ve done since their move to sign Dalton has been nothing more than building depth. To be fair, extenuating circumstances have created this situation. The Bears had no idea going into last season that the salary cap was going to drop by $16 million.
This created a massive crunch that forced Ryan Pace to make difficult decisions. There just isn’t enough money and the GM isn’t willing to get creative in finding ways around it for fear it might mess with the formula that has kept them afloat the past three years. Everything points to Pace and the front office trying to duplicate their success from 2020. That is to say, finding a series of qualities rookies who can contribute immediately.
Is that asking too much?
Cole Kmet, Jaylon Johnson, and Darnell Mooney were all quality finds last year. The fact the Bears managed that without 1st or 3rd round picks is fairly impressive. This time around they’ll have both. Not to mention five picks between the 5th and 7th rounds. Pace has a solid track record for finding talent later in drafts. Putting all this together, one can understand why the Bears aren’t afraid to wait until next month to find their major talent additions.
It’s just that doing so can be dangerous. Remember Pace hasn’t proven adept at scoring hits in the 1st round. His first three picks ranged from disappointments to outright busts in Kevin White, Leonard Floyd, and Mitch Trubisky. Only Roquan Smith was a strong hit. The 2nd round has its share of whiffs as well with Adam Shaheen and Anthony Miller.
Ryan Pace needs to deliver the best draft of his long tenure as Bears GM. Many jobs in the organization could be riding on it. That is quite terrifying.
