Chicago Bears: Ryan Pace Speaks at NFL Combine
Ryan Pace addressed the media at the NFL Combine. Here are some highlights.
Ryan Pace doesn’t speak much, so when he does, Chicago Bears’ fans should listen.
The NFL Combine is an information machine. Of course the combine is a job fair for incoming NFL rookies, but for NFL media and front offices, it’s a chance to break plenty of news just a couple of weeks before the start of the new league season in March.
There were several topics that Ryan Pace discussed, and all of them have been pressing on the minds of Chicago Bears’ fans.
Pace made it official stating that the Bears are moving on from Cody Parkey and that he will be a June 1st designation waiver. That will save the Bears about $1 million in cap space so it’s the smart thing to do. The Bears want to announce that because Parkey will be on the team for a few more months for logistical purposes but they want Parkey and the fans to know that the move will happen.
A couple of highlights from #Bears GM Ryan Pace interview:
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) February 27, 2019
- They weren’t going to sign Kareem Hunt.
- Releasing Cody Parkey was “performance based.”
- Anthony Miller did undergo shoulder surgery.
Pace did take a side swipe at Parkey. When he was addressing local media, they asked him what he was hoping to find with the kicker workout the conducted a few weeks ago, Pace’s reply? “A good kicker.”
Pace also addressed the Kareem Hunt situation. He admitted that the Bears had considered signing Hunt but it never got serious.
#Bears GM Ryan Pace on not signing Kareem Hunt:
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) February 27, 2019
"With Kareem — did we talk about it? Yes. Was it serious? No. And I think every scenario that comes up, we’d do our team a disservice if we didn’t discuss every scenario. We talked about it but it never got serious."
What’s most compelling about all the conversation from Pace (and Matt Nagy) is that they made it clear that the Bears have already interviewed several running backs at the combine, and they acknowledged that the running game was lacking this past season. What does that mean? It means they aren’t satisfied with Jordan Howard as their running back.
Does that meant he Bears will tweak running back or go for a massive overhaul? That’s going to be something to carefully watch over the next few weeks. But there will be some fresh backs lining up behind Mitch Trubisky this season at Soldier Field.