NEWSLETTER
Save for hiring a new head coach and general manager, the Chicago Bears’ offseason hasn’t been full of splashy new additions.
But perhaps the best is yet to come.
And if you take it from Scott Pioli, chances are you might that way after hearing what he had to say about Bears first-year GM Ryan Poles:
Here’s the deal on Poles. He’s very smart, he loves football, incredibly hard working. And the other thing about Poles is this: He’s exceedingly compassionate and has very, very strong emotional intelligence — which is really important in today’s NFL.
That is high praise from Pioli, who has a strong NFL résumé. Pioli, now an analyst for NFL Network, is a three-time NFL Executive of the Year (as voted by the Pro Football Writers of America), spent more than 25 years in the league as a front office executive, and had a part in building three Super Bowl champions. What connects Poles and Pioli is their time in Kansas City. After leaving the Patriots in 2008, Pioli became the Chiefs’ general manager from 2009-12. One of his first hires was Poles, who jumped on board as a scouting assistant in 2009. If you’ll recall, Poles played collegiately at Boston College. And because of the Patriots’ proximity to BC, Pioli had an eye on Poles.
Talk about being at the right place at the right time. Poles had both timing and vicinity working in his favor. Who would’ve known then that it would help launch his career? And who would guess it would catapult him to becoming the Bears’ GM 13 years later. At age 36, no less. That unique combination of luck and making the most of an opportunity has brought us to this point.
Later in the clip above, Pioli gives us a window as to why Poles was fast-tracked as a young executive despite the humble beginnings of being an entry level personnel guy upon arrival.
“He comes in, works for a year, by the end of the first year we promote him to our college scouting coordinator. And he crushed it,” Pioli recalls. “Because his attention to detail, his organizational skills, and his ability to communicate with all of our scouts at such a young age and with so little experience was really extraordinary.”
Attention to detail? Organizational skills? The ability to communicate? These are all things the Bears have been lacking throughout the organization. If Poles can bring the Bears up to code in that regard, it would be helpful in the franchise’s building efforts.
All in all, that 65-second video clip has me feeling better about the future. To be clear, it’s not as if I was feeling super down on Poles. Let’s be honest, it’s probably too early to feel strongly one way or another. But Pioli’s words give me an ounce more of hope than I had when waking up today. And that’s not nothing!
