NFL: Chicago Bears set to name Chiefs exec Poles as new GM

The Chicago Bears are set to appoint Ryan Poles as their new general manager, according to NFL Network.

Poles one of 13 candidates interviewed for Bears GM position

An agreement is said to have been reached to hire the 36-year-old, who will step up after serving as executive director of player personnel with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Reporting the deal, the NFL's official website said Poles had also been on a list of candidates for GM jobs with the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings.

The Bears have yet to finalise the deal that is set to see Poles, who was interviewed on Friday, step up to a general manager position for the first time.

Bears chairman George H. McCaskey has led the search for the new general manager, and interviews were also held with 12 other candidates: Glenn Cook, Champ Kelly, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Jeff Ireland, Monti Ossenfort, Joe Schoen, Ed Dodds, Ron Carthon, Omar Khan, Morocco Brown, Reggie McKenzie and Eliot Wolf.

Nagy and Pace fired after poor 2021 season

The Bears limped in third in the NFC North this season with a 6-11 record, their worst performance since going 5-11 in 2017.

Coach Matt Nagy and GM Ryan Pace were sacked at the season's end, and Nagy's replacement has yet to be confirmed, with Dan Quinn, Matt Eberflus and Jim Caldwell reportedly three contenders for that post.

Poles joined the Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2008, but his playing career was short-lived. He switched to the Chiefs and served in a range of roles, impressing in scouting duties of increasing seniority, before becoming assistant director of player personnel in 2018 and executive director of player personnel in June of last year.

The new Bears regime will build around quarterback Justin Fields - a 2021 first-round pick - in a bid to end an 11-year drought without a win in the play-offs.

Chicago haven't won playoff game since 2010 season

Chicago lost Super Bowl XLI to the Indianapolis Colts after the 2006 season and reached the NFC Championship Game - where they were beaten by the Green Bay Packers - in 2010, both under the guidance of Lovie Smith.

They are winless from just two post-season appearances since, as the Packers continue to dominate the NFC North.