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Playing the role of finger-wagging corporate executive on a 59-minute video conference call with the media, McCaskey lambasted high school students for their “Fire Matt Nagy” chants at Nagy’s son’s football game, insinuated one-time All-Pro center Olin Kreutz was a liar, informed us his 99-year-old mother, Virginia, was “very, very disappointed” in the Bears’ season and wrapped things up with a halfhearted delivery of “Go Bearsss.”
Surprisingly, the ruling on the field was a fumble, recovered by the Tide and replay upheld the call, giving the Tide the ball in the red zone. A few plays later, Young eluded the rush and found Cameron Latu for a 3-yard touchdown that put Alabama up 18-13 with 10:14 left in the fourth.
“There were a lot of frustrating parts,” McCaskey said when asked about the 2021 season. “Another lengthy losing streak. We had one in 2019, one in 2020, one in 2021. Usually, those are season-enders. I admire the way our guys stuck together, didn’t point fingers, but at some point the general manager and head coach have to come up with a way to snap us out of a losing streak before the season is ruined.”
“So Ryan said, ‘Let me think about it and put something together and I’ll get back to you,’ and he got back to me with that. I don’t have a copy of it anymore, but he had it written out, in general what (Kreutz) would be doing. I went and met with Olin and presented it to him. He wanted to do it. He was hoping to do it. Once that came back at $15 an hour, he couldn’t justify it. Olin wasn’t making fun of them. He was stunned. I was like, ‘I don’t know these guys that well. I’ve only been here half a year.’
This time around, it’s 79-year-old Bill Polian, a Hall of Famer and a highly respected football sage, helping steer the process. Polian will be in all the Bears interviews along with McCaskey and Phillips. So will Lamar “Soup” Campbell, the team’s vice president of player engagement, and Tanesha Wade, recently promoted to senior vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion.
Hancock said the management committee, consisting of 10 conference commissioners and Notre Dame’s athletic director, remains stuck on the same lingering issues: whether conferences should have automatic qualification into an expanded field, and which ones; how bowls will be used as sites in a new system; and athlete health and welfare issues related to more games.
“For me, knock on wood, this group has been terrific,” Badgers coach Greg Gard said after the Iowa win. “I can’t even get mad at them. They just give me everything they’ve got dang near every day. They haven’t had a bad day — maybe a snippet of a bad day, but they quickly corrected it.”
“Caught some of us off guard,” cornerback Jaylon Johnson said. “Just considering when it happened. … For me, I didn’t know. I didn’t wake up checking social media or seeing anything that went on. So just hearing the news and seeing (Nagy’s) body language change a little bit, it hurts. He spent a lot of time here. He put a lot into the organization. Having that taken away from you is never easy.”
The back and forth has caused a furor in Australia, where many initially decried the news that Djokovic, who has been a vocal skeptic of vaccines, had received an exemption to strict rules to compete in Melbourne. Many felt the star, who court documents say is not inoculated, was being given special treatment since Australians who aren’t vaccinated face tough travel and quarantine restrictions.
Who will be the next general manager of the Chicago Bears? The franchise is hiring its fourth GM in Chairman George McCaskey’s 12th season. Here is a list of potential candidates, in alphabetical order. Morocco Brown, Colts director of college scouting A former pro scout for the Bears, Brown was director of pro personnel in Washington before moving to Cleveland as vice president of player personnel. He later landed on the college side with the Colts, who have drafted well in recent years. Ryan Cowden, Titans vice president of player personnel After a long run on the college side in Carolina, he oversees pro and college scouting in Tennessee. Cowden interviewed for the Washington Football Team GM job last year. Thomas Dimitroff, former Falcons general manager Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff speaks during a press conference at the NFL combine on Feb. 27, 2019. (Darron Cummings/AP) The Falcons ultimately unraveled under Dimitroff, but they were very competitive for a good stretch and reached a Super Bowl. Ed Dodds, Colts assistant general manager A longtime national scout in Seattle, Dodds moved to Indianapolis to work with Chris Ballard. Dodds interviewed with the Lions and Panthers last year. Brandon Hunt, Steelers pro scouting coordinator He has been in the role with the Steelers since 2010 and could be an in-house replacement for Pittsburgh GM Kevin Colbert, who reportedly will retire after the NFL draft. Jeff Ireland, Saints vice president/assistant GM Jeff Ireland was hired by New Orleans ahead of the 2015 NFL draft. (Jim Rassol / Sun Sentinel) A ball boy for the Bears during the 1980s, Ireland is credited with guiding some very strong drafts in New Orleans. He has been in the GM role previously with the Dolphins and was a fast riser in scouting with the Cowboys. His grandfather Jim Parmer was a scouting legend for the Bears. Dwayne Joseph, Raiders director of pro scouting The former Bears cornerback worked as the director of player development for the Raiders before getting into scouting on the pro and college sides. He was in Philadelphia when the Eagles won the Super Bowl. Champ Kelly, Bears assistant director of player personnel It’s probably unlikely the Bears would consider an in-house candidate, but Kelly got consideration around the league the last few years, getting interviews with Carolina and Denver for their GM jobs last January. Omar Khan, Steelers vice president of football and business administration Khan has long been mentioned as a GM candidate and talked with two teams last year. Like Hunt, he could potentially replace Colbert. Will McClay, Cowboys vice president of player personnel McClay is basically the highest-ranking personnel member of the Cowboys not related to Jerry Jones. He could be on the path to becoming a GM. Dan Morgan, Panthers assistant general manager The former standout linebacker moved seamlessly into scouting and has risen in the ranks with the Seahawks, Bills and now Panthers. Jim Nagy, executive director of the Senior Bowl A veteran scout who has been a part of staffs that appeared in six Super Bowls (winning four), Nagy would be an interesting candidate. His role in running the Senior Bowl has surely broadened his horizons. Monti Ossenfort, Titans director of player personnel The former director of college scouting in New England got two interviews with the Panthers for their GM job last year. Adam Peters, 49ers assistant GM The former director of college scouting for the Broncos was a finalist in Carolina a year ago. Scott Pioli, former Chiefs GM Pioli was the assistant GM in Atlanta from 2014-19 and had the top role in Kansas City for four years. He’s well-regarded and could be back in the mix at some point. Louis Riddick, ESPN analyst ESPN’s Monday Night Football analyst Louis Riddick walks on the field before a game on Oct. 11, 2021. (Terrance Williams/AP) A former director of pro personnel for the Eagles, Riddick interviewed with three teams last January. His platform on “Monday Night Football” has surely exposed him to new ideas should an opportunity come his way. John Schneider, Seahawks GM The situation in Seattle is tenuous, and no one seems to know what will happen with coach Pete Carroll and Schneider, who got a new contract last January. Carroll has control of the 53-man roster, so Schneider’s potential availability is interesting. The Lions reportedly tried to lure him a year ago, as Schneider has Midwest ties. Joe Schoen, Bills assistant GM Buffalo has constructed one of the best rosters in the league. Schoen interviewed in Carolina last year. Rick Smith, former Texans GM Smith was the GM in Houston from 2006-17 and has gotten momentum toward another shot recently. He interviewed in Atlanta and Detroit last year. Rick Spielman, former Vikings GM The former Bears pro personnel director (1997-99) was fired at the end of the 2021 season along with Vikings coach Mike Zimmer after a 16-year run in Minnesota, the last 10 as GM. John Spytek, Buccaneers vice president of player personnel A former college scout for the Broncos, he’s the right-hand man of Bucs GM Jason Licht. JoJo Wooden, Chargers director of player personnel Wooden has ample experience on the pro and college sides and could get interest in this cycle.