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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Robert Zeglinski

Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles claims his dysfunctional, winless team isn’t panicking

Ryan Poles Bears

The Chicago Bears lost their first two games of the 2023 season in embarrassing fashion. In Week 1, they were humbled by the rival Green Bay Packers. In Week 2, a discombobulated offense wilted at the worst possible time against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And all the while, the Bears have seemingly only been interested in actively fanning the flames of their rampant dysfunction.

On Wednesday, they put their starting left tackle (Braxton Jones) on injured reserve. It was a massive news dump in the context of a day that also saw Justin Fields create controversy with a “coaching” comment and former defensive coordinator Alan Williams resign. At the risk of hyperbole, it was undoubtedly one of the more chaotic days in recent franchise history.

Naturally, after such a firestorm, it behooved someone from the Bears’ front office to speak up and address their current mess. In this case, it was general manager Ryan Poles speaking at the lectern Thursday. He professed that despite all the madness surrounding the winless Bears, they’re not panicking. Not at all. Not one bit.

Hmm, I don’t believe that for one second!

Folks, in case it isn’t clear, most NFL GMs aren’t speaking to the media on a random Thursday in September. They usually speak at the start of training camp and have a few offseason check-ins, at most. For Poles to come out with a verbal fire extinguisher this early in the season is the very definition of panic. It is Leslie Nielsen standing in front of an explosion, asking everyone to please disperse calmly.

Kudos to Poles for trying to step up as a leader, but actions speak so much louder than words.

This was how Twitter reacted to Poles' comment about the Bears apparently staying calm

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