Drafting talent capable of providing an impact during their rookie season is proving to be a difficult task for Chicago Bears' general manager Ryan Poles.
The latest example of Poles' questionable drafting strategy was on display during the team's Week 15 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Due to Braxton Jones reporting a concussion to the team's medical staff on Sunday, third-round rookie Kiran Amegadjie was forced into the team's starting offensive line as the left tackle.
Amegadjie was a featured player on Monday night for all the wrong reasons. When Amegadjie was not allowing pass-rushers to take shots at rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, he was the target of multiple penalties.
For a team that entered last offseason with a dire need of addressing the offensive line immediately, it's inexplicable that Ryan Poles used his 2024 third-round pick on project tackle. Sure, Amegadjie struggled on Monday but he should have never been the starter to begin with.
Following an offseason where Poles puffed out his chest in talking up the depth of the Bears' offensive line, the plan for the 2024 season was for Amegadgjie to get practice reps with the idea being that he could be an option for the starting offensive line in future seasons. Instead, Amegadjie starting on Monday night speaks to not only how poor Poles' evaluation of talent is but his drafting as well.
.@DavidHaugh: “You don’t draft projects in the 3rd round. You draft starters in the 3rd round. Kiran Amegadjie is not a starter, not yet – maybe down the road. You know what? By the time he develops, Ryan Poles, you’ll be long gone because you drafted a project in the 3rd round.” pic.twitter.com/OPMlbYB89K
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) December 17, 2024
No matter what direction you look when it comes to the Bears' roster construction, there is the a path that leads back to Poles making a mistake. From top to bottom, the Bears have one of the worst rosters in all of the NFL. That may seem like a harsh statement to make of a roster that has familiar names such as DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and D'Andre Swift but an eight-game losing streak speaks for itself.
Poles does not have the guise of the 2024 season being a "teardown season.". The Bears were meant to contend in 2024, and the fact they are one of the worst teams in the NFL should be the reason why Poles lost his job after the season.