Part of the job of being an NFL general manager is to watch college football games to start game planning of who they want to select in the next NFL Draft. Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles had some time before the opening game against the Minnesota Vikings to get a head start on the 2026 NFL Draft next April.
Notre Dame beat writer Jack Soble shared that four NFL general managers were scheduled to attend the Fighting Irish and the Miami Hurricanes football game on Sunday night. Poles was on the list as well as his assistant general manager, Ian Cunningham.
The following NFL GMs are scheduled to attend tonight's game between Notre Dame and Miami:
— Jack Soble (@jacksoble56) August 31, 2025
Ryan Poles, Chicago Bears
Joe Schoen, New York Giants
Brandon Beane, Buffalo Bills
Brian Gutekunst, Green Bay Packers
Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham is on the list as well.
There's a ton of NFL talent on the Fighting Irish and Hurricanes' football teams. It might be too obvious to who Poles and Cunningham were there to see in the game.
Jeremiyah Love would be perfect for the Bears in 2026
So many mock drafts over the offseason have connected Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love and the Bears together as a perfect fit. Love was one of the top backs in the country a season ago, with over 1,100 yards and 17 touchdowns on the ground and another 237 yards and two touchdowns receiving.
At six-foot, 214 pounds, Love has everything new head coach Ben Johnson loves in his running backs. He can be a receiver out of the backfield and can be the downhill runner in the offense.
The Bears' current starting running back, D'Andre Swift, has worked under Johnson in the past with the Detroit Lions and is looking for a big bounce back year from 2024 after averaging a career-low 3.8 yards per career. Many in the media think that despite Swift being in his second of a three-year contract, he could be out next offseason, similar to what happened when Johnson was the offensive coordinator with the Lions.
Johnson wants to bring in his own players and is slowly working on doing that. Love would be a guy that would thrive under Johnson and develop into one of the top backs in the NFL.
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Poles knows Johnson is wanting to build the offense a certain way and Love would be a perfect fit for it. There might be other players the Bears were monitoring, but Poles' eyes were surely on Love longer than the others.