One area in which Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has drawn tremendous praise over his predecessor, Ryan Pace, is that Poles hasn't been afraid to meet with the media during controversial times for the organization.
There's been no shortage of "point of inflection" moments for Poles during his first three seasons as the Bears' general manager. Whether it was the handling of Roquan Smith requesting a trade; negotiating trade talks for the 2023 first-overall draft pick; acknowledging the failures of the Chase Claypool trade; addressing the HR-related dismissals of two assistant coaches last season, Poles has not shied away from speaking with the media.
That is why many have taken note of the silence from Poles over the course of the past three weeks. While Poles had done his procedural pregame interview with ESPN 1000, he hasn't held a press conference with the team's beat reporters. A surprising development considering that over the past three weeks, the Bears have had players openly calling out the team's coaching staff, a trade of Khalil Herbert, the release of Nate Davis, and the firing of offensive coordinator Shane Waldron.
For a general manager who has prided himself on transparency and, at times, being too honest, it is curious that Poles hasn't addressed the dysfunction that has surrounded the Bears over the past three weeks. Instead, Poles has been more than willing to let Matt Eberflus fumble over his own words.
One mark that has been held against Poles over the course of the past year is his willingness to align himself with Eberflus. While there is some debate over who involved Poles was with the hiring of Eberflus as the team's head coach three years ago, there's no debate that Poles connected himself to the embattled head coach last January when he made the decision to bring him back for the 2024 season. A season is meant to signal a new era for the organization but instead, has proven to be more of the same dysfunction.
Considering that, it's possible Poles' silence is his way of separating himself from Eberflus. With each passing day, it seems clear that Eberflus will be fired by the end of the season. Rather than issue a public endorsement of Eberflus that has no merit, Poles may be biding his time and letting the Eberflus tenure come to a crashing end. There's no doubt that Poles' decisions have played a factor in how quickly Eberflus has regressed as a head coach but the general manager will likely use this dysfunction as a crutch to extend his tenure as the team's general manager. After the season, Poles will likely expand on the Bears' dysfunction this season with the result being that he makes Eberflus as the latest fall guy for the organization's incompetence.
