LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — With the August sun sweltering down across the practice field at Halas Hall, new Bears head coach Ben Johnson challenged his players.
Johnson had his team strap on full pads to conduct a grueling, physical practice, the type of training camp work from a bygone era. The scene struck Bears general manager Ryan Poles, who was curious to see how his players would respond to the first-year head coach Johnson.
“In the moment, does it feel good? No,” Poles said reflecting on that day. “But they believed from his message that it would help us down the road, and they went all out with it. You saw that go through the entire season.”
A year ago this past Wednesday, the Bears officially announced the hiring of Johnson as their new head coach. For Poles, it represented a significant milestone in his tenure in Chicago.
Poles was retained for a fourth year in 2025 despite overseeing a team that went 15-36 in his first three seasons. From 2022-'24, his rebuilding plan struggled to get off the ground under head coach Matt Eberflus. Nonetheless, team management kept its faith in Poles, who put his belief behind Johnson.
Though Poles was unproven and hadn’t secured a contract extension at the time, Johnson jumped at the opportunity to lead the Bears and work with an embattled general manager.
A year ago, the marriage between Poles and Johnson was potentially precarious. It now represents the foundation for the Bears moving forward.
The Bears went from worst to first in the division, winning the NFC North crown by going 11-6 before earning their first playoff victory in 15 years. To accomplish those feats, it took Poles’ eye for talent meshing with Johnson's vision for his scheme and player development.
“Drafting and developing, that’s the ultimate collaboration between a front office and a coaching staff,” Poles said. “You got to have a shared vision.
“You can really see it coming to life this year.”
Before Poles and Johnson met through teleconference in the interview process last January, they didn't have any strong past connection. They didn't share an agent or come from the same NFL coaching/executive tree. The unique link was that Poles and Johnson once sat at the same cubicle in the Boston College football facility, but that was in different years as they never worked on the same staff.
Even so, the two quickly clicked. Poles had conviction that Johnson could deliver the success that had eluded the Bears.
Poles and his front office committed themselves to adding players who fit Johnson's vision. The Bears certainly had many holdovers from 2024 – none more important than quarterback Caleb Williams – but Poles and Johnson also began establishing a common vision in how to move forward.
“We worked in tandem with all the decisions that went on during the course of the year,” Johnson said of Poles. “I certainly rely on him a ton because he's been through this a number of times already, whereas for me a lot of this was a first for me. So between Ryan handling a lot of the roster construction and the decision making over the course of the week – who's up, who's down, the injuries – I thought this thing worked out really, really well.”
In the first year of the Poles-Johnson era, Williams took key strides toward becoming a franchise quarterback, thanks in part to Johnson’s tutelage and structure. The Bears made significant investments on the offensive line by acquiring center Drew Dalman, All-Pro left guard Joe Thuney and right guard Jonah Jackson. And they added a rookie crop of players that shined, with the Bears getting key contributions from tight end Colston Loveland, receiver Luther Burden III, offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo and running back Kyle Monangai.
Poles and his front office have identified talented players for the Bears who Johnson and his staff have developed well early on.
With Johnson and his coaches guiding player development properly, Poles’ scouting vision is now being fulfilled in a manner it wasn’t previously. The Bears believe they're seeing their true potential realized, and this is only the beginning of the work for Poles and Johnson.
“We’ll go back in the bunker here after a couple weeks and we’ll assess where we can get better,” Johnson said. “That’s our commitment to each other. That’s our commitment to this organization is that we’ve got to continue to clean up where we can find little edges that make us a little bit better over the course of the season. So, that’s what we’ll do.”
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.