Bears' triumverate agreed: Pace 'was the guy'

Ryan Pace told the Bears' brass what he thought of their roster, and yet he was still hired as the sixth general manager in franchise history.

"He gave us a good, cogent, succinct assessment of our roster," said Bears chairman George McCaskey who, along with team president and CEO Ted Phillips - and on the advice of consultant Ernie Accorsi - hired Pace.

At 37, the former Eastern Illinois University defensive end was the youngest of four candidates, and yet he was still hired.

"His age wasn't a factor at all," McCaskey said. "He was just the best qualified candidate. He's got a wealth of experience."

If anything, Pace looks younger than his age, maybe because of his palpable enthusiasm for football in general and specifically for the greatest challenge of his professional life - resurrecting the Bears.

The exuberance of youth may serve Paced well in the enormity of that task, considering this season's 5-11 record.

But the age element never entered the discussion either way, according to Phillips.

"After all the interviews, we never once talked about his age," the team president said. "I never knew he was the youngest GM until you guys wrote about it.

"To me, it was because all we were focused on was his experience, what he had to say about what he can bring to the Bears. He did a great job, from showing intensity, from showing toughness, from really being able to articulate the kind of head coach he wants and how to build the roster."

His entire 13-year NFL experience in personnel was spent with the New Orleans Saints, including the past two as director of player personnel.

The decision to hire Pace, according to the men who made it, was a slam dunk.

"When he left the room, Ernie, Ted and I looked at each other, and you could tell by the looks on their faces, he was the guy," McCaskey said. "All four candidates were very strong, but Ryan just stood out; the thoroughness of his presentation. He's a very charismatic individual himself, and we're looking forward to him, as he says, leading the charge."

The McCaskey-Phillips-Accorsi troika will continue to be involved in the head-coach interviews, and ideally the decision will be unanimous.

If it's not?

"It's Ryan's call, OK?" Phillips said. "Would we give input, give ideas, ask questions? Absolutely. But at the end of the day, if Ryan is sold on a certain candidate, we're going with it."

Phillips had never met Pace before his interview, but he and Pace's boss, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis have known each other since shortly after they started their NFL careers in the same month 32 years ago.

"Over the years, sometimes we talked more than others," Phillips said. "But I could pick up the phone, or he can, even if we haven't talked in a year, and share inner thoughts and bounce ideas off each other.

"With Ryan, there was an immediate feeling that he was a good fit and had the right personality, not just to run the football ops, but to have a good impact on the whole organization."

Pace got the nod over Kansas City Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard, whom many considered the favorite because of his 12 years in the Bears' organization (from 2001-12) as a scout and director of pro scouting.

Ballard and Pace both interviewed Wednesday, a day after Tennessee Titans vice president of player personnel Lake Dawson and Houston Texans director of pro personnel Brian Gaine were at Halas Hall.

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