Hearing what Ryan Poles said about the Chicago Bears offensive line tempted me to do something I’ve never considered doing.
One of my journalism school mentors drilled in my head that it is never OK to lead a story with a quote. And ❀that, save for a holy power announcing their return to this plane of existence, there is no scenario in which it would be justifiable. I still hold those pearls of wisdom closely to this day.
But this is what the Bears general ma𝓰nager had to say about his offensive line, which had me doing a double take:
“This is the best depth I’ve ever had.”
I bet that was as jarring to read as it was to write. Heck, it stopped me in my tracks when I heard him say it live . The Bears offensive line has been problematꦿic over the years. Even when the unit has been serviceable, it still finds ways to draw the ire of Chicago football fans. The reality is that the offensive line will still be a point of contention for a certain segment of fans. But for now, I think it is OK for us to enjoy the depth assembled by GM Ryan Poles.
To further drive home my point, you can check out what Chicago’s offensive line looked like when the initial roster dropped on August 30, 2022. Or, if you’d prefer to save yourself a click, here are the depth options the Bears were working in the trenches with back then:
As for the 2024 team:
Ryan Poles saying this is the best offensive line depth he has had since becoming the Bears’ general manager in 2022 isn’t lip service. Look at the group Poles and his front office have assembled and tell me that he is wrong with his assessment. You can’t. You simply can’t. It wasn’t easy. And it didn’t happen overnight. I don’t think the job is done. And they still have to prove it on the field. But this group is far better off now than it was at this time in 2022. I count that as a net win.
Give your honest assessment: Which group is better? Which collection of talent do you feel more comfortable with going into the season? Think back to how you felt in 2022. Now, think about how you feel about this group Ryan Poles has assembled going into the 2024 season. I’m curious to see how you folks feel about the Bears’ offensive line. To be clear, I don’t think it is perfect. But I believe this is one of those the whole is greater than the sum of its parts situations.
Watch Ryan Poles press conference
For the full press conference, you can below:
