Bears new president, CEO Kevin Warren officially begins Monday
New Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren officially began his new job Monday at Halas Hall in Lake Forest. Warren becomes the fifth team president in the team's 103-year history.
Warren is replacing former team president Ted Phillips, who retired after holding the job since 1999. Warren follows in the footsteps of George S. Halas, George "Mugs" Halas Jr., Michael McCaskey and Phillips.
The Bears posted a video of Warren walking up to the main entrance at Halas Hall on Monday morning. They were sure to note that he arrived at the office at 5:47 a.m. Warren took a brief moment to stop and look up at the statue of George S. Halas in front of the main entrance before continuing on through the door and finding his office.
Warren, 59, had been the Big Ten commissioner for four years. In that role, he ushered in a huge new TV contract for the conference and rocked the college athletics landscape by adding USC and UCLA to the Big Ten (they will join in 2024).
Now, in his new role with the Bears, Warren will be tasked with taking over the Arlington Heights stadium project from Phillips. The Bears closed on the 326-acre site of the former Arlington International Racecourse in February for $197.2 million. The Bears have been clear that closing on the land doesn't necessarily mean they will build a stadium. It will be Warren's job to move the project forward.
Prior to becoming Big Ten commissioner, Warren was in charge of the Minnesota Vikings. He helped the Vikings complete a deal for U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, which opened in 2016.
Warren also made it clear that he will look to improve the organization in all aspects. During his introductory news conference in January, he noted that his first goal was to meet every single employee of the team and ask how he could make their jobs easier.
Warren begins his new job on the same day that the Bears begin their offseason program. Across the league, 26 teams can begin organized workouts in the team facilities beginning Monday. Five teams with new coaches began workouts last week. The Eagles, the lone remaining team, begin their workouts next week.
These workouts are voluntary for players. They are not required to attend anything until veteran minicamp in June. The first two weeks of the offseason program are limited to meetings, strength and conditioning and rehabilitation. No actual football will be played, but coaching staffs can begin implementing new playbooks.
The Bears don't begin organized team activities (OTAs) on the football field until late May.