Getty Bears Chairman George McCaskey could severely limit his team if he retains GM Ryan Pace, according to one former GM.
The Chicago Bears — primarily team chairman George McCaskey — have one of the most crucial decisions in franchise history to make in the coming weeks.
The Bears are currently deciding whether to completely clean house and fire everyone, from head coach Matt Nagy and his staff to general manager Ryan Pace, or whether to retain Pace in some capacity. It’s a no-brainer for most fans and analysts, (Pace has a record of 48-64 and is 0-2 in the playoffs over seven years as GM) but multiple insiders are reporting McCaskey’s personal feelings may influence his decision. Some are saying Pace may even get promoted or take on a different role within the organization.
Should Chicago choose to keep Pace around, the backlash from media and fans alike would be tremendous — but according to two sources close to the team, it could also be detrimental to the organization for a far more significant reason.
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Former GM Michael Lombardi: Bears Will Limit Themselves By Keeping Pace
Former Cleveland Browns GM Michael Lombardi, who currently serves as an insider for Audacy Sports, appeared on 670 The Score’s Mully & Haugh Show on January 5, and he says the Bears are going to severely limit their head coaching options if they choose to retain Pace:
I know that to acquire a great coach, that coach will want to have symmetry with the front office. And that doesn’t mean he wants to have all the power, but he wants to be able to have say, to have input and to trust the person that stands beside him to pick players. If they choose to keep Pace – and that’s certainly their right to do – that will limit, that will limit the available candidates on the outside. Because guys that have options, guys that are going to wait for the next hiring cycle are not going to come in when Ryan Pace has built this team. And you’re saying, ‘Wait a minute, I know Nagy may not have been the best coach, but he didn’t really always get the best hand.’ And I think that becomes a real issue. To me just knowing how the NFL is, for them to attract a legitimately high-level coach that has options, it’s going to be a challenge.
Lombardi isn’t the only one saying this, either. Walter Payton’s son, Jarrett Payton, is an analyst for WGN News in Chicago, and he has remained very close to the team his father used to play for. According to Payton, his sources are telling him the same thing.
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Payton: ‘No Chance of Hiring a Big-Name HC’ if Pace Stays
A day later, on January 6, Payton chimed in saying via Twitter that he spoke to a former NFL head coach who told him the Bears would have “no chance” of hiring a big-name head coach if Pace is still anywhere in the picture:
I talked to a former #NFL head coach last night & he said the #Bears will have no chance of hiring any big named HC if Ryan Pace is the GM or President of football ops. cc @WaddleandSilvy
With just one game left on Chicago’s regular season slate, there isn’t much time left for McCaskey and his inner circle to make their decision.
While it’s impossible to say whether keeping Pace will prevent the team from attaining a solid head coach — no one can predict the future, after all — the fact that so many people in and around the league are saying these types of things speaks volumes about how Pace is perceived. And if McCaskey truly cares about the future of the franchise, he might want to start listening.
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