All Access Football Report: Bears Bank On Poles To Vault Up
Chicago is counting on a joint vision philosophy to take them to the promise land.
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POLES PLAN TO VAULT CHICAGO UPWARDS
The Chicago Bears rewarded general manager Ryan Poles (photo: Chicago Bears) with a new contract extension, which runs co-concurrent with new head coach Ben Johnson, keeping the duo under contract through 2029. It’s the start of a new ‘five-year plan,’ after the franchise endured three brutal seasons, as Poles operated with head coach Matt Eberflus, resulting in a 15-36 overall record. The initial surface reaction when the announcement arrived was, how does that happen? However, as we begin to dig a bit further, there is some method to the madness.
When Chicago hired Johnson, it came with some assurance that the head coach would have say in the personnel decision-making process. It’s safe to say that Johnson and Poles worked cohesively during the offseason through free agency and the NFL Draft, satisfactory enough that ownership felt comfortable keeping the arranged marriage in tact.
It also signals an organization that preaches patience, as Poles was just 36 years old when he landed the gig and has received significant ‘on the job training,’ learning from his numerous mistakes. Whether you agree or disagree with the Bears logic, the team is moving forward with this joint-vision philosophy approach shared by Johnson and Poles.
Their offseason strategy involved rebuilding the offensive line, adding three projected new starters up front, while providing more weapons for franchise quarterback Caleb Williams, signing receiver Devin Duvernay, along with drafting tight end Cole Kmet and wideout Luther Burden III. Last offseason, they added D’Andre Swift and selected Rome Odunze. When you add these complimentary parts to a core that includes DJ Moore and Cole Kmet, Chicago now has the makeup of a potent offensive attack!
It would appear to be a stark difference from a year ago, as the Bears ranked dead-last (32nd overall) in total offense. However, the defense will also have some work to do, as Chicago owned the 27th overall ranked unit. Former New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen was hired to turnaround the Bears defense. He also provides the first-time headman Johnson with an experienced leader whom he can bounce ideas off of.
All the right moves appear to have been made but in order to obtain results, Chicago will need to mesh it all together and that takes time. Excitement is howling through downtown Chi-Town for the upcoming season—the sky is truly the limit!
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SCOUTING THE LEAGUE: PREPPING FOR FALL SCOUTING
NFL POWER RANKINGS
RANK || TEAM
Baltimore Ravens
Philadelphia Eagles
Kansas City Chiefs
Los Angeles Rams
Buffalo Bills
Washington Commanders
Houston Texans
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Los Angeles Chargers
Detroit Lions
NFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
Josh Allen, Bills
Lamar Jackson, Ravens
Joe Burrow, Bengals
Jalen Hurts, Eagles
Matthew Stafford, Rams
Jayden Daniels, Commanders
Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers
Brock Purdy, 49ers
Justin Herbert, Chargers
NCAA POWER RANKINGS
Texas Longhorns
Ohio State Buckeyes
Clemson Tigers
Georgia Bulldogs
Penn State Nittany Lions
Oregon Ducks
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
LSU Tigers
South Carolina Gamecocks
Indiana Hoosiers
NCAA QB RANKINGS
Arch Manning, Texas Longhorns
LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina
Carson Beck, Miami
Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
Drew Allar, Penn State
Cade Klubnik, Clemson
Nico Iamaleava, UCLA
Behren Morton, Texas Tech
Sam Leavitt, Arizona State
ELF POWER RANKINGS
RANK || TEAM || RECORD
Nordic Storm (7-0)
Vienna Vikings (7-1)
Munich Ravens (7-1)
Stuttgart Surge (6-2)
Madrid Bravos (5-3)
Raiders Tirol (5-3)
Paris Musketeers (5-3)
Wroclaw Panthers (5-3)
Rhein Fire (4-4)
Berlin Thunder (3-5)
ELF QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Reid Sinnett, Madrid
Jakeb Sullivan, Berlin
Jadrian Clark, Nordic
Ben Holmes, Vienna
Matthew McKay, Frankfurt
Reilly Hennessey, Stuttgart
DJ Irons, Wroclaw
Russell Tabor, Munich
Isaiah Weed, Helvetic
Jaylon Henderson, Paris
IFL POWER RANKINGS
RANK || TEAM || RECORD
Bay Area Panthers (11-3)
Green Bay Blizzard (9-5)
Quad City Steamwheelers (10-4)
Jacksonville Sharks (9-5)
Tulsa Oilers (8-6)
Massachusetts Pirates (7-7)
Vegas Knight Hawks (8-6)
Arizona Rattlers (9-5)
San Diego Strike Force (9-5)
Tuscon Sugar Skulls (6-8)
IFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Max Meylor, Green Bay
TJ Edwards, Tulsa
James Cahoon, Iowa
Dalton Sneed, Arizona
Kenji Bahar, Massachusetts
Nate Davis, San Diego
Josh Jones, Bay Area
Jorge Reyna, Tuscan
Jayden De Laura, Las Vegas
Daquan Neal, Quad City
UFL POWER RANKINGS
RANK || TEAM || RECORD
DC Defenders (8-4)
Michigan Panthers (7-5)
Birmingham Stallions (7-4)
St. Louis Battlehawks (8-3)
Arlington Renegades (5-5)
Houston Roughnecks (5-5)
Memphis Showboats (2-8)
San Antonio Brahmas (1-9)
UFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Bryce Perkins, Michigan
Jordan Ta’amu, DC
Luis Perez, Arlington
Matt Corrall, Birmingham
J’Mar Smith, Birmingham
Max Duggan, St. Louis
Jalan McClendon, Houston
Danny Etling, Michigan
Dresser Winn, Memphis
Kellen Mond, San Antonio
AF1 POWER RANKINGS
RANK || TEAM || RECORD
Albany Firebirds (12-0)
Nashville Kats (7-5)
Salina Liberty (7-6)
SW Kansas Storm (7-7)
Billings Outlaws (6-6)
Oregon Lightning (5-8)
Corpus Christi Tritons (3-7)
Washington Wolfpack (2-10)
AF1 QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Jalen Morten, SW Kansas
Sam Castranova, Albany
Tyler Kulka, Nashville
Malik Henry, Billings
Fred Payton, Corpus Christi
Rakeem Cato, Salina
Dalton Cole, Oregon
Javin Kilgo, Salina
Adam Kruse, Washington
Robert McCoy, Albany
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