LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — Two-and-a-half hours before kickoff on a much-anticipated Saturday at Soldier Field, the navy blue stadium seats were still unoccupied. Traffic hadn't yet begun to back up along Lake Shore Drive, and the Waldron Deck was empty.
Well before the Bears had filed onto Soldier Field for pregame warmups and their exhibition meeting with the Bengals, the sidelines were clear for third-year general manager Ryan Poles and his top lieutenant, assistant general manager Ian Cunningham.
Prior to each practice and game for the Bears, Poles and Cunningham can be found walking counterclockwise around the sidelines. They wear team-issued sleeves, running shoes and often weighted vests – starting at 10 pounds and topping out at 50 pounds by the end of the preseason.
There's no specific target for laps, and there isn’t a competition between the two ex-offensive linemen, neither of whom looks the part of a pulling guard anymore. While the days and conversations change, they remain in lockstep.
It was that way many years before they even began their work leading the Bears.
“As we kind of grew up in the business, the higher up we got, we seemed like we were living these parallel lives,” Cunningham said of Poles. “We got really close.”
Poles was a starting guard at Boston College, while Cunningham played the same position at Virginia. They each graduated and pursued their goals of playing in the NFL as undrafted free agents in 2008. However, neither lasted as a player in the league, with Poles released by the Bears and Cunningham cut by the Chiefs.
So, Poles and Cunningham each began chasing their next dream – to become an NFL general manager.
As Poles got his start as a graduate assistant at Boston College, Cunningham was hired by the Ravens as a player personnel assistant in 2008. Baltimore general manager Ozzie Newsome had first recognized unique traits in Cunningham the player.
“He played at a very good level of football,” Newsome said. “And when you’re not overly talented and to be able to play as he did, you have to do it with instincts and you have to do it with know-how. You have to know how to play. And that’s what allowed him to be able to have a successful career at Virginia, is he understood the position, he understood how to watch his opponent and gain their strengths and their weaknesses so that he could attack. So, he did a very good job just getting himself in a position where he could go out and play effectively. And I think that helped him become a scout.”
Cunningham spent five years as a player personnel assistant with the Ravens before earning a significant professional promotion as an area scout. During that same time, Poles was establishing himself as a rising scout in the Chiefs organization. Poles was hired by then-general manager Scott Pioli in 2009, spending that first year as a scouting assistant and the next six years as scouting coordinator in Kansas City.
NFL scouts often travel the same journeys along the way. Through mutual connections, Poles and Cunningham struck up a friendship. Poles and Cunningham formed a tradition years ago by having lunch in Indianapolis during their stops at the NFL Combine each February. They carry on that tradition to this day.
In 2017, Poles was promoted to director of college scouting for the Chiefs under the watch of former general manager John Dorsey. The same year, Cunningham accepted the same position with the Eagles, who were led by general manager Howie Roseman.
“He can be an NFL GM, and he can be a CEO of a Fortune 500 company,” Roseman said. “That’s the way his mind processes information.
“The ultimate compliment I can give Ian is that I'm a better GM because I worked with Ian Cunningham.”
Cunningham earned a Super Bowl championship ring in his first year with the Eagles, adding it to the ring he received with the 2012 Ravens. Likewise, Poles was a key part of the Chiefs’ rise and garnered a Super Bowl ring of his own when the 2019 Chiefs won the title in February 2020.
Poles and Cunningham continued to rise within their respective organizations, with each earning consideration across the NFL as potential general managers.
With their bond strong and trust in one another established, Poles and Cunningham looked toward a future leading a front office together.
“We always said, ‘Hey, whoever gets the GM job first, (the other) will come over as the No. 2,’” Cunningham recalled. “Just faith in him. We were on the same wavelength. We see things very similarly, which gave me a comfort level and my family a comfort level to make that change and make that decision.”
Poles got his general manager opportunity in January 2022. He was a finalist for jobs with the Bears, Giants and Vikings and was waiting for an offer to emerge. So too was Cunningham, who was offering support to Poles throughout the process. Cunningham was open to joining any franchise’s front office, so long as it was Poles in charge.
When Poles was hired by the Bears as general manager, his first hire for the front office was to tab Cunningham as the assistant general manager – which represented a newly created position for the franchise.
Poles and Cunningham began their work rebuilding the Bears with the goal of creating sustained success. They've led a challenging process that has featured great growing pains, including a 10-24 record across the first two years, but it's a path that has the organization and fans believing that the Bears are ready to contend in 2024 and beyond.
“I am blessed out of my socks to have him by my side through this process,” Poles said of Cunningham. “Especially when you reflect back to the first two years getting this thing off the ground, to have a guy like him.
“We wouldn't be where we are today if it wasn't for Ian as well being there and being an unbelievable partner.”
Cunningham offers constant support but is "not a yes man," Poles said. One of the strengths of the relationship between Poles and Cunningham is their ability to challenge one another.
Cunningham's influence on Poles was evident in the first round of the NFL Draft in late April. As the Bears nervously waited to see if receiver Rome Odunze would be available at No. 9 overall, Poles was ready to trade up and select him.
Cunningham stressed to Poles to trust the analytics team's belief that Odunze would drop to them, and the Bears resisted making an aggressive trade. Sure enough, they landed Odunze at No. 9 overall.
After completing their laps before each practice, Poles and Cunningham often stand by each other’s side as they watch the Bears at work. They're also seated alongside one another for each game, often making a point to muffle their emotions in the press box. Their investment is in this franchise and each other.
Poles knows well that Cunningham will soon land his own job as an NFL general manager. Cunningham interviewed for positions with the Cardinals and Titans back in 2023, then with the Chargers and Commanders this past offseason.
Cunningham had an offer to lead the Cardinals in 2023 but declined the job.
“I don’t think you ever envision making that decision,” Cunningham said of declining the Cardinals’ offer. “But ultimately it just wasn’t the right fit. But I knew that we had unfinished business here and had faith in what we were doing here and knowing the right opportunity would come. It’s just a matter of time.”
In returning to the Bears this year, Cunningham received a contract extension that was announced in late April – just days before the 2024 NFL Draft.
Cunningham was a pivotal presence for Poles and the Bears’ scouting brass in this transformational offseason, one in which they selected quarterback Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick.
The Bears now have a roster loaded with premium talent and hold legitimate hopes of reaching the playoffs this season. The aspiration for Poles and Cunningham is to win a Super Bowl championship together in Chicago.
Beyond that, Cunningham is also striving to become a general manager, an opportunity he believes will come in time.
“It’s humbling because I’ve wanted to be that for a long time – as long as I could remember, (the goal) being a general manager,” Cunningham said. “Just continuing to grind, have faith and do things the right way knowing that if you do things the right way, chances are you’ll have some success, and if you have some success, chances are you’ll have that opportunity.
“I set that goal for myself since I was in middle school, to obtain something like that. To know that I was able to, it would be awesome, that be an honor, but at the same time knowing that’s not the end goal either. That’s continuing to grow and help change an organization, leaving it better than I found it.
“I'm excited for where we’re at right now and where we’re going.”
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.