Bear Digest

Further evidence Ryan Poles still has a ways to go as an NFL GM

Analysis: The Steelers' ability to turn their messy QB situation of last year into two likely third-round compensatory draft picks is the type of thing still eluding Ryan Poles.
Gene Chamberlain|
Justin Fields throws during warmups. The Steelers' have turned around a sixth-round pick given to the Bears for him into a third-rounder.
Justin Fields throws during warmups. The Steelers' have turned around a sixth-round pick given to the Bears for him into a third-rounder. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The Bears under GM Ryan Poles have been a study in how not to game the league's compensatory draft pick system.

It's an obvious area where Poles needs to improve but the basic reason for their failures is they don't bring in enough talent through the draft every year to greatly compensate for their lost free agents, and so they need to keep signing free agents to fill roster holes.

Signing free agents offsets or outweighs teams' lost free agents and can wipe out their comp picks.

Every year the league awards compensatory picks to teams losing players as free agents and other teams are reaping in great rewards like three, four, even five extra draft picks as a result.

The Bears, meanwhile, are the only NFC North team without one this year. They haven't had one since 2023 when they picked safety Kendall Williamson with an extra seventh-round pick, and they last had more than one when they had two in 2021.

The reason this becomes an issue now is what Pittsburgh Steelers GM Omar Khan pulled off quite a maneuver with his quarterbacks from last year. Khan is likely going to get back third-round compensatory picks for the departure of both Justin Fields and Russell Wilson.

They acquired Fields for a sixth-round pick from the Bears and gave up nothing other than a $1.2 million deal to sign Wilson, who had been cut by Denver.

Quite the turnaround for two players they paid almost nothing for, and now they could use it to select two key players on Day 2 of the draft.

Using the system has been something the Steelers, the Patriots, 49ers, Rams and now the Lions are doing to get extra picks.

Poles seems to have made strides leaning on communication with his new head coach to obtain the types of players needed through either trade or free agency.

Once Poles has the draft down well then his ability to work the compensatory pick system can improve and they can say they have a more complete executive running the entire personnel show.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.