Ryan Poles has been tasked with rebuilding the Chicago Bears, and he took a major step in doing that during the 2024 NFL Draft. However, outside of the first round picks, he also made the intriguing decision of taking Iowa Hawkeyes punter Tory Taylor in the fourth round.
While making an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Poles explained the team’s decision to draft Taylor where they did.
“I didn’t expect him to get much further,” Ryan Poles said. “Definitely didn’t think I’d be able to pick him up when we got to the fifth round, and really the thought process there is to make anyone we’re playing really uncomfortable.”
While at Iowa, Tory Taylor won the 2023 Ray Guy Award and was a unanimous All-American selection. He averaged 48.2 yards per punt on 93 punts as a senior at Iowa. Over the course of his entire career, he punted 295 times with 127 landing inside the 20-yard line.
That amounts to a punter who is able to quickly flip the field and force opponents to go the entire length of the field to score. It makes Tory Taylor a weapon who Ryan Poles is excited to have on the team moving forward.
“I didn’t play much in the NFL, but I know running onto the field and having the ball spotted inside the 10-yard line is a very uncomfortable feeling. It’s disheartening at times, and I love taking advantage of field position. Really, that should help us with points as well,” Poles said. “So, I think it’s going to add to our team, and again, make it uncomfortable and difficult for any team we’re going against.”
Shortly following the decision to draft Tory Taylor, Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears waived Trenton Gill. So, for now, it looks like it should be his job moving forward.
Mel Kiper says Tory Taylor was ‘key pick’ for the Chicago Bears in the 2024 NFL Draft
Following the selection of Tory Taylor, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper said that he was a key pick for the Chicago Bears in the draft.
“I think that the first two picks were gimmes. I mean anybody could have made those picks. You could have been a hockey analyst and never watched an NFL game or whatever, a boxing analyst and you would have picked Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze. I mean they were hand-delivered,” Kiper said.
“I think, when you look, the key picks are the fourth round, taking Tory Taylor – punter from Iowa. We know he’s got a great leg. We know he was a critical entity for Kirk Ferentz and the Iowa Hawkeyes. He can flip field position. That’s a critical thing in the NFL. So I think, when you look at Tory Taylor, he’s going to determine a lot.”
