Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears thought process
Hello Chicago Bears family. How are you feeling? Many have yet to be on board with Ryan Poles' decisions during the free agency period. During the 2022 season, Poles said he believes in placing money into positional value. Or did he? Poles claimed to love Roquan Smith and David Montgomery but stated that the price had to be correct.
Ryan Poles then spent money on two off-the-ball linebackers and an interior blocker. The Chicago Bears fans wanted a tackle and defensive line for the team. Poles has yet to make every fan feel content with his roster-building methods outside of the trade.
While on the topic of the trade, Ryan Poles did not fleece the Carolina Panthers. That was a fair trade in most aspects; however, the Chicago Bears lost out. According to the new trade chart, the number one overall selection, minus the draft picks the Chicago Bears received; the Bears were still short 450 draft points. Insert D.J. Moore as a kicker. Moore is worth 450 draft points in this NFL draft. I have liked Moore for a long time, but he is not worth 450 draft points. I believe the Chicago Bears should have still acquired some day three picks at some point to even up the value. But that's ok.
The Bears got their potential number one and decent draft capital. Now, back onto the roster build and Ryan Poles. I believe Poles wanted to keep Montgomery and Smith, but the price was too high for them not to be scheme fits. I was going to write an article titled "Scheme over anything" because Poles really seems to believe in his philosophy. He proved that when he signed his off-ball linebackers and passed on Orlando Brown Jr. The term "NFL value" means something different for everybody. Some believe it is positional, and others think it's something else.
For Ryan Poles (I believe), it is the talent level for the scheme. For example (don't get your hopes up), Poles could believe a player such as Bijian Robinson is the best player (he is) in the draft behind Will Anderson. That's just an example. Poles will not likely attack the draft based on need. If he chooses Paris Johnson Jr. or any of the tackles high in the draft, that could be because he believes they are the best player on the board at the time. Honestly, a trade-back scenario could be a real thing one draft night. Poles has talked about "blue" labeled players that are the best in this draft class.
I assume he already knows who those players are and fully intends to draft one of them. Avoid listening to draft analysts while attempting to figure out who those players are this year. They will only talk about players of need. The actual best players in this draft are (in no specific order):
- Will Anderson Jr.
- Bijian Robinson
- Peter Skoronski
- Jalen Carter
- Bryce Young
- Tyree Wilson
- Devon Witherspoon
- Christian Gonzalez
That is a non-biased list of the top players in this draft class. Ryan Poles mentions that he has a list of 7-8 players he considers "blue" prospects. I have to imagine that is the list. Those players are all on another level than everybody else in this draft class. Will they all work out? Probably not. Do I like every player on that list? Nope.
Everybody has their opinion on changing a couple of players for others they view as a top prospect. So if Poles doesn't trade down and drafts a cornerback or a running back with the ninth overall pick, try not to be surprised. Try not to say, "we need tackles or a defensive lineman." Poles' vision might not match yours. He is building his team, not yours.