Ryan Poles’ First Draft Class Shined In Bears Opener

The Chicago Bears faced a tough challenge going into opening day. Playing the NFC West powerhouse San Francisco 49ers was bad enough. Nor was having to do it in one of the worst rainstorms the city has seen in years. There was also the fact they’d be starting three rookies from Ryan Poles’ first draft class. Nobody would’ve been surprised if they struggled against the stacked 49ers lineup. Instead, the youngsters rose to the occasion.

Leading the way were safety Jaquan Brisker and defensive end Dominique Robinson. Brisker wasted no time making an impact, recovering a fumble forced by Jaylon Johnson in the 1st quarter. Then in the second half, he made a huge tackle for a loss that helped force San Francisco to settle for a field goal. He finished with four tackles and a tackle for loss. Robinson was even better, racking up 1.5 sacks, a tackle for a loss, and two quarterback hits. Incredible performance for a guy that wasn’t even playing defense until his junior year of college.

Nobody should be happier than Ryan Poles.

Top pick Kyler Gordon had a few rough moments in coverage, but he never crumbled. He finished with six tackles, including one for a loss. Then there was Braxton Jones. The 5th round left tackle out of Southern Utah drew the toughest assignment of all. He had to block Nick Bosa and that brutal 49ers front four. It didn’t start well. Bosa beat the rookie for a sack in the first half and had another two hits on Justin Fields. Still, the rookie hung in there and played admirably in the second half, helping Fields to go 5-of-7 for 102 yards and two touchdowns.

Ryan Poles got handed a raw deal when he took over the Bears. He started the off-season with only five draft picks, including no 1st rounder. Through a series of trades, he turned that into 11 picks and watched four of them play pivotal roles in one of the best wins this team has had in a long time. It isn’t hard to understand why the team gave him the game ball along with Matt Eberflus. He seems to have laid the foundation for something special.