Bears' next offseason loss could be a blessing in disguise

Give the Bears all the draft capital.

Chicago Bears, Ryan Poles
Chicago Bears, Ryan Poles | David Banks-Imagn Images

It is safe to say this offseason has given Chicago Bears fans a tremendous amount of hope. All of the additions within the past couple of weeks have brought plenty of positivity into Halas Hall.

Of course, that starts with the hiring of head coach Ben Johnson and trickles down with the staff he's put together.

Finally, this organization started doing things the right way. General manager Ryan Poles made the right hire in Johnson, and since then, the first-time head coach has been busy putting together what looks to be a magnificent staff.

Speaking of Poles, his right hand man, assistant general manager Ian Cunningham, could be on his way out soon as the Bears are in the process of welcoming in so many new faces.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have been in plenty of headlines lately in regards to their new head coach, Liam Coen, how the process played out and, of course, all of the soundbites from Coen's first few days in the building. Nevertheless, Coen gets to choose his general manager in Jacksonville as part of his deal to become the head coach.

And, it appears Coen could be leaning toward hiring Cunningham.

Ian Cunningham could leave the Bears for Jacksonville, but Ryan Poles would benefit from the loss

On the latest episode of his podcast, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter provided an update on the situation between Cunningham and the Jaguars.

"Here's a name we need to have on our radar -- I'm not saying he gets the job, but they say he's going to be in contention for the job -- the Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham," he said.

"He's going to be a candidate for that Jaguars GM job -- some might say he's the leading candidate for the Jaguars GM job. I don't know if he's the leading guy or the guy, but he's certainly going to be in the mix," Schefter continued.

More Bears news:

Now, should Cunningham leave the Bears for Jacksonville, Poles and the front office would actually benefit from the move. If he did, indeed, get the Jaguars' GM gig, then the Bears would get a compensatory third-round pick in each of the next two drafts.

This year, Chicago already owns four picks inside the top 72 of the 2025 NFL Draft. Should they net a compensatory pick for Cunningham's departure, that would give them five picks inside the top 100.

For a team needing a ton of help on the offensive and defensive lines, owning five picks in the top 100 would be a huge advantage. Here's to hoping Cunningham gets a rightful promotion elsewhere while the Bears also stay winning.