Bears

Bears GM Ryan Poles said DB Coby Bryant‘s championship pedigree was a big reason why they opted to sign him in free agency.

“He knows what it takes to get to that point,” Poles said, via The Athletic. “So when he’s talking about how hungry he is to re-establish that, it gives you a ton of hope. That competitiveness, the passion for the game, we took that into consideration as we built our free-agent board.”

Former Bears C Drew Dalman‘s abrupt retirement caught the team off guard, but Poles is happy with how the organization responded.

“We talk about what we can do, rather than what the problem is,” Poles said. “It’s something I’m proud of — just the level of communication and collaboration. It’s problem-solving. The hard part of this job is not the things you expect and that you anticipate. It’s the unexpected. I think that’s where you can have those wins that help you progress as a football team.”

Bears CEO Kevin Warren credited Poles for remaining calm after Dalman’s retirement and trading WR D.J. Moore this offseason, which helped the organization remain steady in the face of adversity.

“One of the things I saw in Ryan is that his preparedness allowed him to make really strong and solid decisions,” Warren said. “You can imagine, if your starting Pro Bowl center, who you just signed 10 months ago in free agency, retires and then you’re trading DJ Moore and then (facing) a lot of these other decisions, if you weren’t prepared, those would be difficult decisions. But him being so prepared allows him to remain calm. And when he’s calm, everyone around him is calm.”

Packers

Packers GM Brian Gutekunst is excited to see WR Matthew Golden enter his second year in the NFL and thinks he can make a significant jump.

“With all the opportunities we gave him, I thought he did an excellent job,” Gutekunst said, via ESPN. “I would have loved to have seen him get more opportunities through the year. It didn’t work out that way. But when he did, he performed, and he performed at a high level. I’m really excited to see where he goes in Year 2. I think his ceiling is very, very high. We’re very, very excited about what he’s going to do for our football team moving forward.”

Former Packers WR James Jones admitted that Golden has way more natural ability than what he had and believes that he’ll settle in within the scheme.

“He got way more than I had — way more juice, way more moves,” Jones said of Golden during a recent appearance on the annual Packers Tailgate Tour. “I may have had the ability to go get the ball a little bit more, but the dude’s going to be a superstar. We’re talking about when I was a rookie, yeah, I had 47 catches, I was out there with Brett Favre, but my head was spinning. It’s still spinning. I could remember back to when, I would come out of games … with like 15 missed assignments. I’m calling the wife like, don’t unpack yet, because we gonna mess around and get cut. We’re just here for a little bit. But like, my head was spinning. I was making a couple plays. But for him, I just think it’s all about finding ways to get him in a groove, and I think with [Doubs and Wicks] out now, you’ll see him have a bigger role, you’ll see him get some chemistry with Jordan Love. But he got everything you want in a wide receiver.”

Former Packers WR Randall Cobb acknowledged that while expectations are high for Golden being a first-round pick, he believes the ceiling is also high for him as well.

“Yes, he was a first-round pick and, yes, the expectations were probably really high, but I think his ceiling is really high,” Cobb said. “To see him end the season the way that he did in Chicago, I was so proud of that moment and for him to have the opportunity. Obviously, wish the game would have turned out differently, but I think that’s something to build on, and it’s something to realize that he has the capability and he’ll probably have more opportunity now with less guys in the room.”

Vikings

The Vikings go into the 2026 season with serious questions at the quarterback position and J.J. McCarthy. Recently retired WR Adam Thielen said McCarthy understands that he has a lot to work on and thinks the quarterback has the competitive drive to succeed. 

“He’ll be the first one to tell you there’s things he’s gotta work on… For me I just love his attitude, his mindset. I always look for a guy saying, ‘Does he have that dog in him?’ Can he just go out there with a switch to be a different person and compete at the highest level, and he’s got that,” Thielen said, via VikingsWire.