New Chicago Bears GM Phil Emery "pumped up" about new role - NFL News
Phil Emery who has taken over the role of general manager at the Chicago Bears faced the press in this capacity for the first time in his introductory press conference on Monday, January 30th, 2012 and laid out some of his plans for the franchise.
The Bears who hired Emery after interviewing five potential candidates had announced the hiring on Sunday and President Ted Phillips is confident that his new hiring has the ability and drive to make an impact in his role.
"He'll be ready," Phillips said. "I'm sure of it."
Emery who previously worked for the Kansas City Chiefs as director of college scouting will be starting his second stint with Chicago. The new general manager had previously worked for the franchise as a scout and his fourteen year experience, scouting prospects
for the National Football League (NFL) franchises including the Chiefs and Atlanta Falcons will be a great asset for Chicago as they prepare for the new 2012-13 season.
"Nobody had a negative thing to say about Phil Emery, so I became intrigued early on," Phillips said.
The new general manager looked comfortable at his press conference and told reporters that he is excited to work for the elite franchise and take them back to the pinnacle of football.
"I'm very pumped up about this opportunity to lead this franchise, This is the premier franchise in the NFL with the premier fan base, and a great sports city: the city of Chicago. I have been here before.”
The new general manager beat off competition for the role from five other candidates which included Jason Licht, Director of college scouting at New England Patriots, New York Giants, Head of college scouting Marc Ross, Player personnel director Jimmy Raye
of San Diego Chargers and the Bears in-house candidate Tim Ruskell who was the interim general manager for the Bears during the search.
Emery will have some big tasks ahead of him in the coming months and the new general manager believes that he is up to the challenge.
"I have a very good feel for where we're at as a team, and that will help us greatly as we move forward in this planning process, evaluating pro free agents, and how they fit against the draft," Emery said.
The Bears are currently locked in a contract standoff with running back Matt Forte who rejected a previous contract offer from the franchise and will become a free agent as his contract nears expiration and Emery will be expected to resolve that situation
along with other players who will be entering free agency.
The Bears fired previous general manager Jerry Angelo after a poor end to the 2011-12 season with the franchise missing out on the playoffs with fans and analysts blaming Angelo’s draft choices for failing to step-up when required.
Tags: