It is no secret that I am a Ryan Poles supporter. He was the general manager I wanted the Chicago Bears to hire. I've supported him from the beginning despite not supporting every decision he's made. No general manager hits on every decision he makes whether it is in free agency or in the draft. However, there are critical moments in a general manager's career that make or break their career. Many times, that involves the hiring and firing of head coaches. Ryan Poles is starting one of those critical moments in his career and if he makes the wrong choice, he could end up being fired.
Yep. It's the only time that you will catch me saying that Ryan Poles should be fired -- at least anytime soon. That critical decision that Poles has to make is firing this coaching staff. The hiring of Matt Eberflus is already a black mark on Poles' career. His only saving grace is the idea that George McCaskey and the clown show running the organization already held interviews with potential head coaches and came up with a shortlist of three coaches that included Eberflus. This just shows how dysfunctional this organization can be. Who restricts their GM to a shortlist of coaches?
Ryan Poles must fire Matt Eberflus or find himself on the hot seat too
McCaskey later said Poles wasn't restricted to just the three coaches on their shortlist, but I don't believe it. There was the Trace Armstrong agent connection between Ryan Poles and Eberflus, but I have to imagine Matt Eberflus wouldn't have been the choice by Poles should he have had the ability to interview and hire from anyone available within the NFL.
It's possible that Poles already knows that Eberflus and this staff are going to be fired at the end of the year. The Chicago Bears have never fired a coach in the middle of a season. Marc Trestman was fired after two years and I think Eberflus could be the next to only last that long. 25 games into his tenure, the Bears have only won 5 games. They still haven't won back-to-back games while he's been in charge. Tyson Bagent's performance against the Chargers, plus the poor performance by the defense, exposed this coaching staff even more.
Ryan Poles may have already made his decision, but if he hasn't and doesn't move on from Eberflus by the end of the year, then he should also be fired. That said, I'd love to see Eberflus fired now. His decision-making and lack of preparedness are showing up way too often for someone preaching the H.I.T.S. principles.