Bear Digest

Final 2024 Bears Offseason Grades for GM Ryan Poles

Bears GM Ryan Poles took significant action toward solving root problems with his team during the offseason and it's time to gauge where they're at as OTAs begin.

Gene Chamberlain

Caleb Williams can be the game-changer the Bears organization has always needed, and GM Ryan Poles has set him up for success.
Caleb Williams can be the game-changer the Bears organization has always needed, and GM Ryan Poles has set him up for success. / David Banks-USA TODAY Sports
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Bears GM Ryan Poles took significant action toward solving root problems with his team during the offseason and it's time to gauge where they're at as OTAs begin.

The Bears take the field next week for actual non-padded practices, meaning they can throw to receivers who are defended, but there is no hitting.

It is a key point in the offseason because coaches are now evaluating on-field practice by players assembled for NFL rosters. They'll say the competing starts in training camp and this is still for learning, but that's not reality. Every year it's obvious they're look at various players in different positions at organized team activities. The roster competition is important during OTAs . It's no longer theory or on paper, but out there on grass and on film for review

As such, a "soft" end point to the offseason has occurred and it's time to take stock of the work done by GM Ryan Poles in assembling this year's Bears roster. With the Bears getting on the field as a team, it's now in coach Matt Eberflus' hands.

Poles' draft and free agency have been previously studied in separate phases. So it's time to put everything together to encompass the entire bulk of Poles' offseason work and give the Bears personnel chief his final offseason grade.

Sure, he might add a player or two at the last second to plug a roster or lineup hole but those are acts of desperation this late in the offseason and not part of the grand scheme. 

Here's how Poles did at meeting his team's needs this offseason.

RANKING THE TOUGHEST FIVE GAMES ON 2024 BEARS SCHEDULE

NICK WRIGHT'S STUNNING SUPER PREDICTION FOR BEARS SEASON

Offense: A+

Poles had no fear pursuing a new quarterback and discarding the old one, and in this task it must be acknowledged the coaching staff had a significant role determining the value of former QB Justin Fields. If they had been entirely sold on what they saw from Fields, then Poles wouldn't have needed to use the first pick for Caleb Williams and could have traded down for another major score of draft picks. They saw the need, after Fields failed to produce wins in 13 out of 17 games that were there to be won in the fourth quarter the last two years. You can blame the talent around him all you want but Matthew Stafford had 15 of his 19 fourth-quarter comebacks and 18 of his 22 game-winning drives while playing with some of the worst Detroit Lions teams in history and is renowned for being able to produce at game's end. When a QB has the chance then, they need to get it done. When a QB who can do it both with his arm and his legs is in that position, there is no excuse for not getting it done. Fields didn't, and Poles recognized this, then determined Williams was the type of QB who can stand up to adversity and get it done. 

Teams get only three years to make this judgment on QBs based on the current CBA, unless they want to gamble on great improvement coming in Year 4. This would buck what history says about QBs.

The key to this offseason on offense was not only getting the QB but surrounding him with talent. Keenan Allen in a trade, Gerald Everett and D'Andre Swift in free agency and Rome Odunze in the draft were all additions without faults. The Bears kept bringing in second-rate No. 2 tight ends and finally went after a veteran with a proven pass-catching ability in this offense. Robert Tonyan Jr. had done it in Green Bay in the old offense Luke Getsy brought to the Bears, but only had more than 18 catches twice in his career and it was when Aaron Rodgers was his quarterback. Allen is exactly what any young quarterback can use -- a security blanket of sorts. He always gets open or makes the catch, just like DJ Moore.

If there is a valid criticism of what Poles did here it's the lack of world-class speed. A receiver who could run 4.3 or faster was not added. In fact, they lost a 4.38 40 time when Darnell Mooney left. But no one will complain about Odunze's 4.45-second speed when he is able to elevate so well and win contested catches 75% of the time like he did in college.

At the non-skill positions along the offensive line, it was more a case of making sure they had options if someone is injured. Poles did this. Ryan Bates gives them security at both guard and center should someone get injured. The drafting of Kiran Amegadjie gives them a swing tackle who might develop into something more. Both tremendously upgrade the pressure on the current starters because they are or could be capable of being starters, especially Bates. Amegadjie is more of a project until proven otherwise.

To make sure depth is even greater, they signed free agents Jake Curhan and Matt Pryor to add to the backup group with Larry Borom and Ja'Tyre Carter. There is experience, depth but the promise of something in the future with the line. What they really need is health from the starters, after injuries or blocking issues forced switches to the starting offensive line 19 times in the last two years.

Defense: C

The big defensive changes came last year but this doesn't mean the work is done and the change last year doesn't count on this year's improvement grade. For two years, Poles has failed to completely address their problems on the defensive line. He traded last year for Montez Sweat, but the need for the counter off the other edge has existed since Poles came to Chicago. It's still there because no one can be certain a fifth-round draft pick in Austin Booker is going to produce as a rookie, and although DeMarcus Walker did improve as he worked more in the scheme last year he still was a long way at season's end from being a consistent pass rush threat Making matters worse, the defensive tackle position became an even bigger question when Justin Jones left, because they're determining Gervon Dexter or Zacch Pickens will be ready to start and play better than Jones in their second seasons after both had obvious issues to address as rookies.

The other area of concern was safety, where it became more and more obvious as 2023 went on that Eddie Jackson was having problems in back. The fact he went through the draft and free agency to this point unsigned shows other teams saw it, as well. It also didn't help that Jackson missed five games the last two years and suffered foot issues both seasons. He missed 13 games total in three years. The solution they came up with was another veteran with about the same experience, but a better record for avoiding injuries. Is Kevin Byard an upgrade? It's possible, but at age 31 it's difficult to see how he'd be a significant improvement and if the Eagles didn't want to keep him around it says a great deal. Howie Roseman doesn't usually increase his discard pile unless it's warranted. CBS Sports, in fact, called the Byard signing one of the worst by any team in the offseason.

The improvement will come from within for the Bears defense, because last year at this time they were still teaching the system to one starting cornerback, two linebackers and one defensive lineman, and waiting for another defensive lineman to come at midseason. Playing together for a significant stretch can result in big improvement.

BEARS ROSTER BREAKDOWN: DESPERATE FOR DEFENSIVE LINE DEVELOPMENT

BEARS ROSTER BREAKDOWN: JAQUAN BRISKER DEVELOPMENT AN ISSUE

Special Teams: A-

Drafting a punter in Round 4 is a bold move but Poles deserves credit for acknowledging the importance of field position when he took Tory Taylor. Trenton Gill's hang time consistency fluctuated greatly throughout the season and several times he produced his worst punts when they most needed a good one. The theory behind the Tampa-2 defense is they make opponent drive the ball, don't give up big plays and at some point the offense makes a big mistake resulting in a turnover. A good punter makes the distance longer for those offenses to drive and increases the opportunity for the defense to come up with a takeaway in plus-territory.

Adding linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga helped their coverage teams as he had 11 special tackles and two fumble recoveries the last three seasons.

Their annual punt return issues were looked at immediately by bringing back dependable Dante Pettis, and there is still the possibility they could use Odunze there after he showed a knack for this in a brief attempt to do it in college.

The only other way they could have improved special teams was to bring in a more serious challenger at long snapper, because Patrick Scales will be 36 this year. They already had to change one element of their place-kicking process by removing Gill as holder, so maybe stability at long snapper for another season is better.

Salary Cap: B+

Poles brought the Bears in at $12 million in effective cap space, according to Overthecap.com. That's enough for a move or two yet and to operate with during the season in case of injury. In addition, should something come up in terms of injuries and they need to make a trade or some other significant signing, there are numerous veteran contracts weighed largely on the cash side and they can be converted to bonus money through restructuring to obtain needed cap space. They don't like doing this but it can become a necessity.

The best thing Poles did in the offseason toward better cap help was reset the clock on the quarterback position. They'll have at least three years more of bargain rates at the game's most costly and important position but maybe they'll have a passer who can win games at the end now instead of losing them.

The worst thing Poles did for the cap was not draft a pass rusher in Round 3 or trade up into Round 2 to get one because chances they'll produce there are higher and the cost is still significantly lower than in Round 1. By not finding a solution, he made it possible they'll need to pay another costly veteran at either edge or 3-technique.

Final Overall Grade: A-

There is no way to give an A or A+ because the defensive line problem has been there since Poles came to Chicago and still hasn't been addressed.

The quarterback problem has been addressed with a rookie, which isn't always ideal. However, it's the consensus top rookie passer in the draft and one many scouts have called generational. Going after a veteran QB often does not work out, The quick-fix transplant solution at QB often fails and is far more costly, as the Jay Cutler trade showed this organization. Drafting the best overall passer is a real step forward toward their future.

When Poles surrounded Williams with more offensive talent than any new Bears quarterback has had to work with, it displayed a real commitment to fixing the main problem plaguing this team most for decades if not their entire 105 years of existence.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOn Maven

Published
Gene Chamberlain

GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.