It’s a new era of Chicago Bears football under general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus. Never mind Chicago’s 3-12 record with two games to go.
The Bears feel they’re building something different in the Windy City, and talent acquisition is a huge part of changing what has been a middling culture. That’s what’s most important on the field and in the coach’s offices, but just like anything, success in the NFL is often top-down.
That’s why it’s interesting to see that Chicago is reportedly eyeing a very successful executive to lead the Bears as team president. ESPN is reporting that Chicago has its eyes set on Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren, amongst other candidates, to replace long-time team president and CEO Ted Phillips.
Warren is reportedly one of the final candidates for the job and the interview process is expected to wrap up within the next few weeks. This process started in the summer for Chicago and included multiple in-person interviews with Warren and the other candidates.
The Big Ten commissioner’s resume speaks for itself. Since taking over in 2019, Warren has brought the conference a record-setting television deal and seems poised to steal USC and UCLA away from the Pac-12 as early as 2024.
Warren also has plenty of NFL experience — 21 years to be exact — both as an agent and team executive. Notably, he was with the Minnesota Vikings for 15 seasons, serving as the executive vice president of legal affairs & chief administrative officer from 2005-2014 and then chief operating officer from 2015-2019.
