5 Bears Immediately on Thin Ice to Begin 2025 Offseason
By Joe Summers
The Bears have endured one of the most disappointing seasons in recent memory, falling from what began as a campaign with playoff promise to another catastrophic year with a presumptive top-10 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
There is significant blame to go around and every level of the organization has a hand in it. The McCaskey family has listened to chants to sell the team, and the dysfunction has already begun to impact rookie QB Caleb Williams and the locker room at large.
In order for the franchise to overcome the nightmarish begin to Williams' rookie deal, turnover is required across the board. Let's look at five Bears immediately on thin ice to begin the 2025 offseason.
1. Ryan Poles - GM
If there's a legitimate argument in favor of keeping Ryan Poles as GM, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone making it outside of apparently the team's ownership. Largely saved by taking advantage of a desperate David Tepper with the Panthers, Poles has merely a handful of objectively wise moves during his tenure.
He's amassed an absurd 15-36 record during his three years in charge, overseeing two of the worst losing streaks in franchise history. The long list of mistakes far outweighs the few positives, making it obvious to everyone that Williams deserves someone new shaping the roster.
Instead of building a functional offensive line to support the rookie signal caller, Poles focused on skill-position players like Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze. That's an acceptable decision with a good line, but it's clear Chicago started off the year with one of the NFL's worst group in the trenches.
Rumors I'm hearing on Bears head coach opening via team sources:
— Charlie Campbell (@DraftCampbell) January 1, 2025
- Lions OC Ben Johnson wants the job, but Ryan Poles has reservations. There is a lot of belief that Johnson would push Poles out.
- Johnson is said to want Commanders assistent GM Lance Newmark as the GM. Newmark…
If the unsubstantiated reports that Poles could be an obstacle in hiring someone like Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson prove true, retaining one of the worst general managers in the history of the NFL on a record basis says it all. If you're a serious franchise intent on competing, why would you choose Poles over Johnson?
Williams' future is in serious doubt as long as Poles controls it. He's on thin ice from the perspective of the fan base, but ownership has illustrated they're too short-sighted to surround the rising star with competent decision-makers.