"After a few years of coming close in interviews, Ian Cunningham is finally leaving the Bears for a general manager position. The now former Bears assistant general manager is headed to the Atlanta Falcons to be the team's new GM, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. So now we can add finding a new assistant general manager to Ryan Poles' offseason to-do list."
"Usually, the Bears would receive compensation picks for having a minority candidate leave for a promotion. However, according to CBS, the Bears will not be receiving said compensation picks as the league sees this as a lateral move due to new team president Matt Ryan being the top decision maker in Atlanta. Technically, the Bears could have blocked the move since it was considered lateral, but Ryan Poles and company clearly chose not to."
"It's a bit of a bummer for Poles and the Bears to have developed a candidate in Ian Cunningham that's seen as a rising star and not receive picks when he departs, but still, it's a great opportunity for Cunningham. Not to mention, he's come close to GM gigs in each of the past two offseasons, earning multiple interviews, was a finalist for Jacksonville's GM job and Washington's GM job, and even turned down the chance to be Arizona's GM in 2023. Needless to say, Cunningham has been more than due for a general manager position."
Ian Cunningham is leaving the Chicago Bears to become the Atlanta Falcons' general manager. Cunningham previously served as the Bears' assistant general manager and had multiple GM interviews over the past offseasons, including finalist spots with Jacksonville and Washington and declining Arizona's GM offer in 2023. Falcons team president Matt Ryan and Bears GM Ryan Poles are longtime friends and former Boston College roommates, and Ryan valued Poles' opinion in hiring Cunningham. The NFL declined to award the Bears compensation draft picks because it viewed the move as lateral with Matt Ryan as Atlanta's top decision-maker, and the Bears did not block the move.
Read at Bleacher Nation
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]