'A shot in the arm': Why Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles swung for Jeffery Simmons now

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles was waiting for this.

On Thursday, he made his move. After a year of speculation, the Bears swung for the fences.

Jeffery Simmons is a Bear. The expectations have never been higher. Most importantly for Poles, the process has never been better.

"It's a different feeling. It feels good," Poles said on Friday. "I mean, we've done a lot of good work to put ourselves in this position."

It’s been a long time coming. Poles deserves credit for bringing the Bears to this point.

He landed quarterback Caleb Williams. He hired Ben Johnson as head coach. He built a team that finally took the north.

Poles vowed to never give it back. This is him following through this his promise. This move is also a sign that Poles is getting aggressive for a Super Bowl the team sees in its reach.

Big picture view:

Poles knows what the outside noise sounds like. He doesn’t pay attention to it. If he did, he might have traded two first-round picks for Maxx Crosby already.

"F- them picks is a big thing. That's really not what we're about," Poles said. "I know it took a lot to get this done. We absolutely believe draft and young talent is how you sustain success."

That’s true.

Under Poles, the Bears drafted Dillon Thieneman, Darnell Wright, Colston Loveland and Caleb Williams in the first round of the past few NFL Drafts.

This is different, though.

Poles identified an NFL landscape where the Bears could contend for the next two seasons. Trading two first-round picks to land Simmons is evidence of that.

Compare that to the 3-14 season Poles endured in his first season as general manager of the Bears. It’s been a long road to reach where he’s at now.

"To be in a space that you're chasing championships where we were just trying to get off the ground the first couple years I was here," Poles said. "I feel really good about it."

What's next:

Poles and Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi go way back. The two were both with the Kansas City Chiefs, and now both are NFL general managers going through the process of retooling and building a roster.

"The hardest ones are the ones where you do right by the organizations," Poles said. "You feel so wrong in the moment."

Borgonzi mentioned on Thursday afternoon and Poles said it on Friday the two sides had a phone call late on Wednesday. The Titans made the decision in the morning to do the trade.

It wasn’t the first time Poles called Borgonzi about Simmons, either.

"The answer on him was always no," Poles said. "I honestly didn’t think it would ever happen."

Borgonzi might feel the weight of moving Simmons.

Poles is now on the other side of that process.

He just made a move he believes can make the Bears a Super Bowl contender with a player who impacts the game on and off the field.

"You do this type of move when you have a combination of impact player on the grass as well as someone who can impact your culture," Poles said. "You need to have both. That’s what Jeffery does."

Poles needed more convincing, though. He didn’t have to look far.

After watching Johnson and Williams win the NFC North last season, he watched them grow into a top-10 offense in the NFL through seven weeks.

That quarterback and coach combination is a luxury not many teams in the league have. He also took inventory on everything else he needed.

Poles noted that Super Bowl champions dating back to 2018 have all had a high-level defensive tackle who could disrupt opposing offenses. The likes of Fletcher Cox, Aaron Donald, Chris Jones, Vita Vea, Jalen Carter and Leonard Williams come to mind.

The trade for Simmons didn’t just improve the roster, either. Poles felt the energy shift in the locker room immediately.

"It was definitely a shot in the arm here," Poles said, before noting the team locked back in to focus on preparations for Seattle.

That shot in the arm brings the Bears a defensive tackle talent they haven’t had since Akiem Hicks in 2018, even though he was a defensive end in a 3-4 scheme.

Perhaps Simmons can be as impactful as Tommie Harris was for the Bears in 2006 and 2010? Statistically and by most metrics you choose, Simmons is one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL.

By any measure, Poles believes the Bears were on the cusp of greatness. Trading for Simmons is a way to get there.

"We really believe this is going to help us take the next step as an organization," Poles said.

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