Chicago Bears history is filled with all sorts of drama, on and off the field. One of the things that has made this organization a success for long periods of time is their willingness to make bold moves. There comes a time when playing it safe isn’t going to move the needle anymore. So those in charge decide to take off the training wheel and bike down the mountain.
Few men understand this reality better than general managers. They’d love nothing better than to go into every offseason, use all their allotted draft picks and add great players. Or they’d love to hire the exact right head coach or sign the perfect free agents. The reality is this doesn’t happen sometimes, and it forces them to improvise.
How can they get the team on the winning track again? Often it requires a move that some might view as bold. Others may call it crazy. The best way to describe them here is ballsy. Maybe it turned out right or maybe it turned out wrong. Yet nobody can argue it took guts to make the call.
Here are the ballsiest moves Bears GMs have made in modern history.
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Jim Finks trading Wally Chambers for a future 1st round pick
Finks was in the process of dragging the Bears out of the mud in the mid-to-late 1970s. He’d gotten them to the playoffs in 1977 but it was clear there was still lots of work to do. A year later, he decided to employ a strategy that could best be called controversial. He traded a proven player for a pick in a future draft. In this case defensive stud Wally Chambers for a future 1st.
Chambers was a three-time Pro Bowler at that point and one of the best players on the team. However, he’d suffered a knee injury in ’77 and then became deadlocked with the team in a contract squabble. These reasons compelled Finks to trade him to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for their 1st round pick in 1979. A lot of people questioned that move.
In the end, it was the right call. Chambers only played one more season before his health forced him to retire. That pick became #4 overall in the draft, which Finks used to draft Arkansas defensive lineman Dan Hampton.
Mark Hatley drafts Brian Urlacher in the top 10
The 2000 NFL draft would end up being the last for GM Mark Hatley. He’d had mixed results through his first three years with the team. It’s possible by that point he knew his job was in doubt. So it seems like he decided to stop being cautious and took a bold swing for the fence. Boy did he ever swing at what looked like a curveball into the dirt.
Brian Urlacher was a mystery going into that year. While there was no question he was a physical freak of nature, he’d dominated at a small program in New Mexico and had played a defensive role that featured a lot of safety. Yet the Bears coaches insisted they could turn him into a full-time linebacker. Hatley listened to them and took this unproven kid #9 overall.
The GM was indeed fired a year later, but he must’ve been sipping his tea watching Urlacher join the Hall of Fame 18 years later.
Jerry Angelo trading for Jay Cutler
All things considered, Jerry Angelo wasn’t in bad shape by the spring of 2009. His team still had a strong defense and an emerging stud at running back in Matt Forte. If he could add some young blood on the former while finding more weapons to help the latter? The team would be geared up for another run at the playoffs. They had just gone 9-7 the previous year.
However, Angelo was convinced the team wasn’t going to win a Super Bowl unless they upgraded at quarterback. Veteran Kyle Orton was a good leader, could manage games well and didn’t make a lot of bad mistakes. The problem was he had limitations. There were things he couldn’t do that hamstrung the offense at times. So Angelo decided to go all in on a blockbuster trade for Denver Broncos Pro Bowler Jay Cutler.
It was a true doubling down. The trade cost the Bears their 1st round picks in 2009 and 2010 along with a 3rd round pick and Orton in the deal. Angelo believed Cutler’s talent was on another level. Something the team hadn’t seen in years. He could lead them to a championship.
Angelo was almost right. Cutler got them to the NFC championship in 2010 but they fell short 21-14 to Green Bay. The team started to fall apart after that. The Cutler era is seen as mostly a disappointment today, but one must still applaud the former GM for having the guts to take the chance.
Phil Emery hiring Marc Trestman
Most people naturally trash this move for the disaster it became. However, it’s easy to forget just how ballsy it was at the time. Here’s a GM who fired a proven head coach in Lovie Smith. A man who’d gone 10-6 in 2012. It’s one thing to fire a coach for a losing season. Emery had the guts to do it after what is considered a successful year, even without the playoffs.
Yet the GM was determined on his course. He wanted an offensive head coach. Somebody who could build a foundation around Cutler to maximize his potential. The decision came down to two choices. One was Bruce Arians, the reigning Coach of the Year who’d developed Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, and Andrew Luck into instant successes.
Then there was Trestman, a major CFL success who hadn’t been in the NFL for almost a decade. Emery became enamored with his beliefs on leadership and building trust with players. So he got the job. For a time it seemed to work. The offense in 2013 was one of the best the Bears have had in age. However, Trestman’s inability to control some of the louder personalities in the locker room eventually led to divisions.
The crashed and burned a year later and both men were fired.
Ryan Pace trades up for Mitch Trubisky
Our most recent addition to the list. Looking back, it is likely that Ryan Pace knew what he was getting into when the decision was made. Drafting Mitch Trubisky by itself was a bold move. Here was a young quarterback from a primarily basketball program who’d only started one year in college. Just 13 games of experienced.
The two other big names on the board, Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson, were far more seasoned and ready for the NFL. Pace not only went ahead with Trubisky, he moved up from #3 to #2 overall to make sure he got his guy. The trade ended up costing two 3rd round picks and a 4th round pick. A cost many to this day have lambasted.
It’s unclear yet if Pace has earned full vindication for his decision. Trubisky did make the Pro Bowl last season but it’s clear he has work to do. Still, the conviction the young GM showed can’t be understated. A lot of guys in his position wouldn’t have had the guts to do it.
