Ben Johnson, Ryan Poles, George McCaskey and Kevin Warren
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Under the leadership of Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles, the future may be very bright in the city of Chicago
Fans of the Chicago Bears know all-too-well that we’re coming up on 40 years since the franchise’s only Super Bowl title. It’s been nearly 20 years since the team’s last trip to the big game. And while Chicago’s struggles to find a franchise quarterback have been well-documented, the team has had nearly as little luck finding the right combination of head coach and general manager. But Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles may be the duo that buck this trend.
In a recent press conference, Bears owner George McCaskey and president Kevin Warren voiced their support for both Johnson and Poles, echoing a sentiment that many Bears fans are feeling as well… this may be the braintrust that propels pro football’s oldest franchise back to the top of the National Football League.
“To see the relationship that Ryan and Coach Johnson have built allows us to have a chance to build a really good football team and a football program with two young leaders,” Warren said.
So what is it about this duo that is different from head coach/general manager tandems of the past that have tried and failed to turn the Bears into a year in, year out contender?
‘World-Class Leader’ Ryan Poles Both Courageous and Calculating
Although Chicago’s win-loss record (15-36) during Ryan Poles’ tenure doesn’t inspire much confidence, there’s no question that thanks to the many bold moves that Poles has been willing to make over the last three years, the Bears are in a far better spot now than when he arrived in January 2022.
Consider, at the time Poles took over, Chicago was without a quarterback — what else is new? — without draft assets, and without cap space. Simply put, the Bears were in football hell. But in three short years, Poles has changed all of that.
Upon his arrival, the Bears started to shed salary, make bold trades that netted them both draft compensation and talented players — most notably, the deal that sent the 1st pick in the 2023 NFL Draft to Carolina — and have rebuilt the roster to a point that only two projected starters in 2025, Cole Kmet and Jaylon Johnson, were on the roster prior to Poles’ arrival.
Poles has used draft picks on the likes of Caleb Williams, Darnell Wright, Jaquan Brisker and Kyler Gordon. Trades have brought DJ Moore, Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson and Montez Sweat to the Windy City. Cap space has been spent on a rock solid linebacker duo — Tremaine Edmunds and TJ Edwards — D’Andre Swift and Drew Dalman, among others.
It’s the right mix of veterans and players on their first contract that make you think Chicago’s short-term and long-term future is more secure now than it has been in decades. And for that reason, Poles was rewarded with a contract extension that will keep him in Chicago through the 2029 season.
“We made it very clear how we feel about Ryan,” Warren said of Poles. “He is a world-class leader. He’s talented. He’s hard-working. He has a transformative thought process, which is critically important.”
In truth, the only major misstep in Poles’ tenure has been sticking with Matt Eberflus for one year too long. But with the hire of Ben Johnson, there’s a chance we’ll soon forget about that.
Ben Johnson ‘Epitomizes What The Chicago Bears Stand For’
In hiring Ben Johnson, the Bears did something they haven’t done each of the last four times they’ve been in the market for a head coach… they hired the guy that Bears fans wanted. Marc Trestman, John Fox, Matt Nagy and Matt Eberflus were met with reservations right out of the gate. But Ben Johnson? He might as well have been welcomed by a parade right in the middle of downtown Chicago.
Bears fans clamored for Ben Johnson for years while watching Eberflus and his staff commit coaching malpractice as Johnson turned the Detroit Lions offense into a juggernaut. And with two chances a season to see one of the most brilliant play-callers work his magic for a division rival, it’s understandable that a fanbase would get behind him. Fortunately, Johnson seemed just as interested in coaching in Chicago as Chicagoans were in having him coach this team.
“I think people are very excited that we got the guy (Johnson) that they wanted us to get,” McCaskey said.
Ben Johnson will ultimately be measured by how Caleb Williams develops under his tutelage, but make no mistake… Johnson isn’t in Chicago to just coach the quarterbacks. He’s taken total command of this franchise and is building it in his image day in and day out.
“Coach Johnson is everything we had hoped for, everything we had planned for and then some,” Warren added. “He’s an excellent planner, speaker, he’s diligent, he has a creative mind as you’ve seen from practice. And one of the greatest attributes is that he epitomizes what the Chicago Bears stand for. Just toughness and grit and attention to detail to carry forth the legacy that George Halas started and has carried through the McCaskey family.”