The Chicago Bears brass spoke to the media today at Halas Hall after they completed their exit interviews with players on Monday. I was immediately reminded of a general rule of thumb in sports: Bad teams usually stay bad because of bad ownership. Ownership that’s too cheap to spend, too hands-on, or too clueless to understand what’s truly going on. It’s often a combination of those traits.
Then there’s the Chicago Bears, who trot out George McCaskey as the face of their mom-and-pop shop ownership group, a man who sounds increasingly incompetent every time he speaks to the media.
Here’s a fun nugget from McCaskey’s conversation with reporters today: When asked whether contractual alignment between the GM and head coach is important in the interview process, McCaskey said: “I don’t think that’s a factor.”
George, I’m willing to bet you’re wrong. In fact, it’s been reported that multiple candidates—including Ben Johnson—desire that alignment and will demand it. And they should. Why would a head coaching candidate with options want to take a job where the GM’s future isn’t, minimally, tethered to the head coaching hire?
