The hiring of Kevin Warren should mean the standard has been raised. He should know as someone who had worked for Detroit and Minnesota and saw the Bears from afar. He should know how much beating the Packers means for this organization.
Does Warren and Poles think drafting either Caleb Williams or Drake Maye in 2024 will instantly make both Eberflus and Getsy a better coach? I don't. Drafting a new quarterback with a coaching staff on the hot seat next season is repeating the same mistakes they have made with John Fox and Matt Nagy.
This organization cannot run it back with Matt Eberflus in the name of stability and culture. Culture is developed when you win. And his record is now 10-24. What's the point of hiring Warren when we are repeating what Ted Phillips did for more than two decades? The Bears have fallen behind the Packers and now the Detroit Lions. This is the first time Warren faces a real test as a team president. He will be met with greater scrutiny more than ever.
General Manager Ryan Poles will go into the off-season as a man on the spot. If he runs it back with Eberflus next season, the odds of him getting fired will only increase. It does not matter how the roster looks much better since he took over and the first-round picks Poles can fleece should he decide to trade the first overall pick to an equally quarterback-needy team.
This will probably be his only shot at drafting a franchise quarterback and hiring his own head coach. Putting both the quarterback and a new head coach on the same timeline seems logical.
While both men favor stability, Poles could find himself in a tricky position knowing Warren did not hire him, and Warren could use him as a scapegoat if things remain the same in 2024.
As the most important off-season in franchise history officially begins tomorrow, we will find out how serious they are about winning. For better or worse, their decisions could shape the entire organization for many years to come.