Bears' GM Ryan Poles Denied His Due Respect in Future Power Rankings

The early failures of Ryan Poles' tenure with the Chicago Bears appear to still be dogging him.

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Chicago Bears are moving up in the eyes of the NFL world after a wildly successful 2025 season, but many analysts don't yet believe that they've arrived as legitimate contenders. ESPN published their annual future NFL power rankings on Monday, a projection of each team's potential for the 2027-2029 seasons. Each team is graded by a panel of experts on their starting quarterback, the overall roster excluding the quarterback, coaching, and their front office, and the Bears finished at No. 12.

While some Bears fans may object to finishing outside the Top 10, there are some silver linings here. For one, the Bears moved up six spots from their No. 18 position in ESPN's 2025 future NFL power rankings. Two, ESPN's experts ranked Caleb Williams as the ninth best quarterback in the league, while the coaching staff finished fifth. What dragged the Bears' ranking down is the front office, which checked in at No. 19 in the NFL.

Ryan Poles is still paying for early mistakes, but recent successes are boosting his stock

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles before the game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While the written analysis didn't say much about GM Ryan Poles, it's clear that the consensus view of Chicago's decision maker remains negative. To be fair to the naysayers, Poles' first few years as general manager were a disaster, prompting calls for the Bears to fire him after the 2024 season. And while every GM has his misses, Ryan Poles' worst personnel moves have been egregious.

However, Poles first two or three years were always going to be bad. When he accepted the general manager job, he undertook a complete and immediate rebuild of the roster, and he started by trading Khalil Mack to the L.A. Chargers. Now that the fruits of his labor are beginning to blossom, it's about time that he starts getting credit for the excellent moves he's made, like trading the first overall pick in 2023 to the Carolina Panthers, drafting Caleb Williams, and trading for All-Pro guard Joe Thuney.

What was arguably his best move came three years ago. Poles controversially traded back one spot in the 2023 NFL draft, passing on standout Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter to select Tennessee offensive tackle Darnell Wright, a move that has since been fully vindicated by Wright's record-setting contract extension.

The best is yet to come for Ryan Poles and the Bears

Chicago Bears DC Dennis Allen, GM Ryan Poles, and HC Ben Johnson at Halas Hall. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If there's one big takeaway from Poles' spot in these power rankings, it's that he jumped up several spots from the year before, when he came to an abysmal 27th place finish. Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams each made larger leaps, but Poles still gained a fair amount of respect from ESPN's experts.

However, like the team he runs, most people want to see more success before they conclude that Poles has officially arrived. One good season is great, but it can always be written off as a fluke if the Bears regress hard in 2026. Building on last year's success and reaching a Super Bowl, or merely sustaining that same level of success, will probably see the Bears vault into the Top 10 of ESPN's future power rankings next year.

As for Ryan Poles, his 2026 draft class will also go a long way towards determining public opinion about him. His 2025 draft class earned high marks, and if his latest class can feature more breakout rookies, I wouldn't be surprised to see Poles listed among the NFL's best general managers.

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