Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles and CEO Kevin Warren didn’t offer details at their press conference on Monday when they were asked about how they’d deal with candidates who might not be excited to join an organization where the general manager is on the hot seat and has a short leash.
Poles said the Bears could work through that with any potential candidate. Warren, who was hired by Chicago to build a stadium, thought the prospects of finding the next head coach would be easy, given the team has Caleb Williams and plenty of cap space for 2025.
NFL coaches are worried about the Chicago Bears’ ownership
The picture Halas Hall has painted for themselves looks rosier than what the rest of the NFL thinks. Per The Athletic‘s Dianna Russini, agents and coaches are worried about the dysfunction that starts from ownership and tickles down to Poles.
Via The Athletic:
“There are decades worth of cautionary tales regarding the organization from the top down, and any candidate is going to want a clear understanding of the relationship between Warren and GM Ryan Poles. Who has the final say, and how will that dynamic affect the head coach’s authority?
It’s no surprise that coaching agents and potential candidates are already doing their homework on Chicago’s ownership and leadership dynamic. They’re trying to figure out if this is a stable situation, or if it’s a risky landing spot. The team claims it’s searching for a “leader of men,” and that might be true — but in Chicago, it seems the men already in the building might be under evaluation as well.”
The Bears have created problems for themselves
This is a mess that chairman George McCaskey has made. The owner, a self-described non-football guy who would rather ump little league baseball than attend Chicago’s draft war room, has put his front office in a tough spot to hire a head coach before Williams’ pivotal second season in the league.
The Bears could have provided some long-term clarity by firing Poles along with Eberflus, allowing the incoming coach to be in sync with the new general manager. However, per Warren’s own admission, it’s not really clear how much authority a new general manager would have had anyway with Chicago’s current dynamic.
