Report: Ryan Poles not happy with front office dynamic |
It keeps getting better and better for the Chicago Bears, not in a good way.
This past Monday, all the organizational dysfunction came full circle as Bears GM Ryan Poles appeared on the Marc Silverman Radio Show on ESPN and discussed the Bears' organizational culture. As expected, there has been plenty of turmoil brewing within the organization. Still, I don't think anyone expected it to be as bad as Poles made it sound, as he is the next person visibly frustrated with the direction of his team and how the front office handles things. Although it may not have been a direct shot to the Bears president, Kevin Warren, Poles doesn't seem to be on board with how Warren handles certain things, which could leave the door open for even more wholesale changes. Warren has gone on record saying he is looking forward to working with Poles beyond this season, especially when hiring the next head coach. Poles may have other ideas, and if what he was talking about is true, you may see a mutual parting of ways following this season, which would put the Bears in an even tighter spot next season. BIG report on Waddle and Silvy today that Ryan Poles is frustrated having to report to Warren and might not have taken the job if he knew about this power dynamic. The biggest takeaway from the interview was what Poles said about doing things behind closed doors. One of the main reasons he took the job in the first place was that he loved how the team handled the business decisions, as he would report directly to the team's owners. Knowing that you could take any financial decision, internal issue, or coaching issue right to the owner makes the decision process much easier, as no middleman is involved. That is how most teams operate in today's game, but even since Warren arrived as the team President, things have been changing, and in this case, it doesn't seem to be changing in a good way. Poles supported the Warren hire but weren't 100% on board when the move happened. Some would even say he was visibly frustrated but willing to give it a shot for the organization's best interest. While Poles has no personal issue with Warren, the moment Warren took over, the whole dynamic changed. Warren would report to the owner instead of Poles, who would now report to Warren. That is the buffer mentioned above, as Warren is now the middle man between Poles and the Owners, which doesn't seem to sit well with the Bears GM. Not only is Warren the middleman, but Poles was also very vocal about his displeasure about reporting to someone else instead of the owners. Some wonder if he would've even taken the Bears job if this was how things were structured when he was hired. Talk about a big bombshell to drop when entering an offseason and looking for a new contract. There is a possibility that things are getting blown out of proportion a little bit, and things may not be as bad as they seem, but from all accounts, there does seem to be a lot of internal tension between Poles and Warren, or at least the way things are being handled right now. The biggest surprise about all of this was hearing Warren talk about Poles the way he has and discuss a contract extension for him after this season. Either he feels like their relationship is on good terms and that Poles is the right man for the job, or that is the turmoil Poles is talking about, where maybe the advice he gives Warren isn't getting to where it needs to be. During a time when the Bears need to nail their next coaching hire, this is the last thing the organization needs, mainly when Ben Johnson laid out a clear plan for what he is looking for in a job offer. He wants his contract to be linked directly to the GM's contract, and if that can't be done, he will most likely be looking for a different organization. If Warren can't guarantee that Poles will be here long-term, he needs to make a decision about him this offseason. You either cut ties with Poles and move on, or you figure out a way to coexist. The more losses pile up, the worse the tension gets, putting the Bears in a very difficult spot heading into the offseason. This is something to watch, and it shouldn't surprise anyone to see a parting of ways at the end of the season.
Wowza. It keeps getting worse at Halas Hall. This is not a situation a sought-after coach would want to enter. #DaBears pic.twitter.com/WeD3vOsEwU
