Going into free agency, I made the same mistake as many of our passionate fans. I believed that I knew Ryan Poles’ strategy.
After the drama surrounding Roquan Smith during the offseason last year, Poles had apparently made it clear that he was unwilling to pay a premium for non-premium positions in today’s NFL.
Roquan Smith called his bluff. Little did he know that Ryan Poles has a poker face. He subsequently dealt Roquan Smith to the Baltimore Ravens for a 2nd round pick.
When free agency began, Ryan Poles was seemingly sticking to his convictions by signing T.J. Edwards to a team-friendly three-year contract.
The Chicago Bears and Ryan Poles clearly have a plan in place for the defense.
Media pundits agreed this was parred for the Ryan Poles course. He acquired an under-the-radar player who could immediately contribute to a talent-starved Bears defense. In fact, many believed he was an absolute steal.
What would be next? An edge rusher, a three-technique, or an offensive tackle, surely. A “premium” position.
Rumors were rampant that the Chicago Bears were after numerous players. With the most cap space in the NFL, Bears fans dreamed of signing a stud offensive tackle to protect Justin Fields for years to come or a Tommie Harris-type three-technique. Nobody could have predicted what would happen next:
The Chicago Bears have already made some noise this off-season.
Ryan Poles sent shockwaves throughout the entire league by signing 2-time Pro Bowl linebacker Tremaine Edmunds to a seismic 4-year deal.
The reactions poured in as swiftly as the deals themselves. Bears fans everywhere had strong opinions on this signing, especially after T.J. Edwards’ signing and the emergence of Jack Sanborn.
After my initial shock wore off, I too sought answers. After some thought, the realization hit me like a ton of bricks. Ryan Poles knows his Chicago Bears history.
With the hire of Matt Eberflus and Alan Williams last offseason, the Bears ditched the 3-4 defense that Vic Fangio brought to Chicago and reintroduced the Tampa 2.
That is a defense once utilized to great effect under recently born-again Chicago legend Lovie Smith. It is important to reflect on what made that scheme work which is the players.
Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, Tommie Harris, Charles ‘Peanut’ Tillman, Mike Brown – you get the point.
While some players came and went under Lovie’s tenure, it was critical that he had the correct type of players to execute the Tampa 2 defensive scheme. Once those crucial players were either gone or past their prime, the Tampa 2 became ineffective.
The Chicago Bears need to get their defense back on track after 2022.
This is why Ryan Poles could not pay Roquan Smith what he desired. He was not
fit to be the engine to make the Tampa 2 hum. They needed their Brian Urlacher, a sideline-to-sideline athletic freak who could also take away the entire middle of the field.
Enter Tremaine Edmunds. While he has yet to reach his full potential, he is only 24 years old and his athletic profile is as close to Brian Urlacher as you can get.
As a captain and the play-caller, he consistently took away the middle of the field in Buffalo’s defense.
His ability to quickly drop into coverage after reading his keys is extremely rare. T.J. Edwards also has that kind of uncanny instinct. It is no accident that Ryan Poles targeted these players in free agency.
Ryan Poles is preparing to bring great defense back where it belongs. With David Montgomery now playing for the Detroit Lions, the Chicago Bears will need great linebackers to fill the gaps quickly in Matt Eberflus’ defense.
Once the trenches are addressed through the NFL Draft and the ensuing cuts that are sure to occur, the Monsters of the Midway will be back. When that happens, Ryan ‘King’ Poles can claim his throne in Chicago Bears General Manager lore.