Ryan Poles Speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine: Free Agency, NFL Draft, Pass Rush Help, More ...Middle East

Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles spoke on Tuesday morning at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Poles and his front office are armed with more than $79 million worth of cap space (h/t OverTheCap) and own four top-75 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft — including the 10th overall selection in Round 1.

Poles discussed a variety of topics during his press conference. I’ve pulled some key quotes from around the beat and added some thoughts to provide context and depth. You can watch the full presser at the bottom of this post. In the meantime, enjoy some highlights.

Ryan Poles on how free agency and the draft fit the Bears needs

This was a great pull by The Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain:

Bears GM Ryan Poles in Indy: "What I like really about the pairing so far of free agency and the draft is I do believe that the supply of players is matching our needs." OL, DL, RB, TE, etc. etc.

The buzz surrounding the 2025 NFL Draft isn’t where I’m accustomed to it being at this time of year. And it wasn’t until I was writing out this post about the upcoming draft’s strengths that it hit me that the buzz isn’t what it used to be because the strength of this draft is at the unsexiest positions in the game.

Interior offensive linemen, defensive linemen, running backs, and tight ends are positions in which this draft is deep. Those also happen to be positions that take a backseat to quarterbacks, wide receivers, and offensive tackles. But as far as I’m concerned, I think it is good news that the Bears’ biggest needs are the positions this draft seems to be loaded in. There is no excuse for Ryan Poles not to come out of this offseason with major holes at those positions.

What about adding a pass rusher?

We have spent so much time discussing the Bears’ needs on the offensive side of the line of scrimmage that I feel there are times when the team’s holes on the defensive side of the trenches get overlooked. With that in mind, I feel like this quote from Ryan Poles holds some weight:

Will Ryan Poles prioritize a pass rusher in FA or the draft? "I would probably argue and say if you get a good pass rusher and you draft a pass rusher, you can't have enough good ones," Poles said.

This quote reminds me of something Eagles GM Howie Roseman has said in the past about double-dipping at positions because it helps your odds. Think of it this way: If free agency and the draft are coin-flips, why wouldn’t you actively give yourself as many coin-flip chances as possible in your attempt to have it land the way you want? Given what Poles said above, it wouldn’t surprise me to see Ryan Poles line up a free-agent pass rusher in March, then add another option at the position with one of the team’s first three picks in the upcoming NFL Draft.

Matt Rooney’s latest NFL Mock Draft has the Bears using the No. 10 overall pick to target one of the class’ best pass rushers. Meanwhile, Patrick Flowers’ list of Bears free-agent targets includes a pair of notable defensive linemen.

Ryan Poles on Ben Johnson’s vision

This quote is equal parts encouraging (for the future) and damning (when you think about it knowing about the past):

Ryan Poles on the beginning stages working with Ben Johnson: "His ability to really give a clear vision of what he wants and needs to be successful is really, really good, and you can just tell the high football IQ is on a totally different level than what I’ve seen and been a…

I sure as heck would hope that the Football IQ is on a higher level than what it was from the previous coaching regime. With all due respect to those who were on the previous staff, the decision-making from the top bled into poor execution from the roster, which led to a disappointing product on the field. We saw the Bears upgrade in talent last offseason. But we also saw that an injection of new players will only go as far as leadership will take them — and we witnessed how much poor leadership could sink an otherwise talented team.

There were too many times in recent years in which Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus appeared to be operating on parallel tracks, but going in different directions. It made for some awkward fits in roster construction and didn’t ultimately lead the team to the places it thought it would go. Perhaps Ryan Poles and Ben Johnson will have better luck finding alignment.

For more from Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles, you can watch the video of his Tuesday press conference at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis below:

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