With about one month remaining until the end of the 2023-2024 NFL regular season, more clarity is being provided on the role that Chicago Bears‘ team president Kevin Warren will have moving forward.
This season marks Warren’s first season as the Bears’ president. The belief was that Warren was primarily hired to handle the Bears’ stadium project but given the background he has in football, there was an expectation that he would have a say in the team’s football operations before too long.
Warren appears ready to oversee the Bears’ football operations. In her preview for Week 13 of the NFL season, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini (Subscription Required) reports that Warren has been given the power to oversee the Bears’ front office including general manager Ryan Poles. Previous reporting has suggested that Warren will be making changes to the team’s football hierarchy.
Russini also reports that the Bears are not expected to make any in-season coaching changes. To the credit of Bears’ head coach Matt Eberflus, the Bears are 4-4- since their 0-4 start to the season. Short of the Bears going undefeated during their final five games of the regular season, the team will not be making the playoffs.
Poles likely will return for a third season as the Bears’ general manager but the future of Eberflus is not certain. There has been a trend among the Bears’ beat reporters that Eberflus will be back for a third season as the team’s head coach. However, even with the Bears’ improved play over the past eight games, Eberflus still has his shortcomings as a head coach. The Bears’ collapse against the Detroit Lions two weeks ago highlights the reasons why Eberflus is out of his element as the team’s head coach.
A potential Bears’ head coaching vacancy will likely be among the most coveted jobs in the off-season. A new head coach would have his choice of moving forward with quarterback Justin Fields or likely having the top pick in the 2024 NFL Draft to take USC’s Caleb Williams.
