PALM BEACH, Fla. — This will be the closest Ryan Poles comes to taking a break in the two months since taking the most high-pressure job in Chicago sports: fixing the wayward Bears.
Decades of mediocrity cloud the sky above Halas Hall, but Poles is a world away from that at the NFL’s annual meeting. He’s got an ocean view at the palatial, 1920s-styled Breakers resort, and while it’s a business trip, it’s the best possible business trip.
Another meeting just ended, and walking into a room full of head coaches and fellow general managers knowing he’s now their peer felt surreal to Poles.