Recent News May Have Tipped Off Ryan Poles’ Planned Next Move
After signing D’Andre Swift to open free agency, the Chicago Bears disappeared like a submarine under the ocean. Nobody knows where they went or where they will resurface. We may have finally gotten a hint on that. Yesterday, the Jacksonville Jaguars were busy. One of their biggest additions was signing veteran wide receiver Gabriel Davis from the Buffalo Bills. It cost them a three-year deal for $39 million. According to Henry McKenna of Fox Sports, the Bears offered a similar contract.
In the end, Davis wanted to go home to Florida.
While the offer didn’t land, this news clarifies one thing. The Bears are involved in the wide receiver market. Poles likely hopes to secure a viable weapon across from D.J. Moore, especially as the team prepares to select a quarterback #1 overall next month. It is about finding a good fit at the right price. While Davis fell through, the team still has plenty of options left on the table. Among them include Calvin Ridley, Curtis Samuel, Josh Reynolds, Tyler Boyd, K.J. Osborne, and Odell Beckham.
Ryan Poles will never apologize for being disciplined.
Some people aren’t happy he hasn’t been more aggressive, but the reality is most of the deals handed out on the first day were far too expensive for the talent involved. The common saying is free agency is when teams hand A+ contracts to B+ players. Chicago lived that reality for several years. It never brought them sustained success. Poles aims to use the market to search for bargains, filling holes in the depth chart wherever possible. Then, he will use the draft to stack the roster with blue-chip talent.
Last year proved Ryan Poles understands how to find good players at acceptable prices. Andrew Billings and T.J. Edwards were two excellent examples. They helped turn the Bears defense around and barely cost a combined $10 million. The GM knows if he waits this out a little longer, somebody on that free agent market will lower their price so that the Bears can swoop in. Poles believes this approach will work, and it’s hard to argue after seeing the team’s improvement last year.