The Chicago Bears have have struggled to turn high-level defense into a Super Bowl contending formula given the offense hasn’t lived up to expectation. Now, they are looking for a new head coach and general manager as the thick of the NFL offseason approaches.
The other NFL organizations currently with an opening for the GM role include the New York Giants, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Denver Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Las Vegas Raiders. Each team has their own unique pros and cons from the perspective of a candidate.
An anonymous NFL GM who spoke to Brad Biggs of Chicago Tribune ranked the Bears GM vacancy as the No. 2 job on the mark. He noted how the quarterback position is something that many focus on when evaluating open GM jobs, but instead, it’s the ownership of the team that matters above all else.
“The one thing everyone focuses on is who is the quarterback,” said one GM who ranked the Chicago Bears No. 2. “That is the wrong approach, and it’s something I did. You never know what is going to happen, so focus on ownership and (whether they will) give you a chance to win.
“Everywhere you go is broken for whatever reason. If you have a quarterback, great, but focus on the owner who gets it.”
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Not everyone thinks as highly of the Chicago Bears GM job as the previously mentioned anonymous executive who spoke to the Chicago Tribune. In their polling system of 19 league executives, coaches and veteran agents, Chicago came out ranking sixth out of the seven openings.
A key factor for the Bears’ underwhelming offense was using the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft on Mitchell Trubisky. Such significant of an investment at the most important position on the field was a wise choice in a vacuum, but it just wasn’t the right player. Seeing as though names like Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson were taken shortly after, a misfire of that nature is tough to overcome.
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Currently, the Bears have a combination of Andy Dalton and Nick Foles as veteran options at quarterback with Justin Fields to develop in the fold. Fields has shown some flashes at times but still has to prove himself at a higher-level over the duration of a full-season to move up in rank to be among the best of the best in the NFL. Could that be enough to attract an intriguing GM candidate?
“Top-10 defense with some pieces there,” one pro personnel director told the Chicago Tribune. “Justin Fields is either going to be a plus or a minus. You can sort of ride him, and it’s not your fault if it doesn’t work out. That buys you some time if nothing else. The roster needs work, though.”
“From the outside, it looks like ownership has provided everything football operations could ask for, and that’s always a piece of the equation,” a college scouting director said. “It’s not that way everywhere.”
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A common theme among the participants in the poll was that a lot of work is required by the Chicago Bears to fix their offense. The team not only needs to develop Justin Fields into being a franchise-quarterback, but also needs to improve the offensive line and add more receiving threats.
