Jerry Angelo Jerry Angelo is an American football executive . He was the General Manager for the National Football League ' s Chicago Bears from 2001 to 2012 . Prior to joining the Bears , Angelo spent 14 years overseeing Tampa Bay Buccaneers ' scouting department as their Director of Player Personnel . Angelo graduated from Miami University in 1971 . Early career . Angelo began his career in the NFL as a scout for both the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys in the early 1980s . Four years later he moved on to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , a team that had experienced brief success . An expansion team established in 1976 , the Buccaneers lost the 1979 NFC Championship Game to the Los Angeles Rams . What followed were a chaotic series of player tragedies and setbacks that sent the team into a slump . A succession of coaches and numerous roster changes failed to revive the team throughout the 1980s . Angelo was associated with the appearance of front office divisions and management mistakes . By the late 1990s his 14 - year tenure in Tampa Bay was perceived as successful , as the Buccaneers made the playoffs three times from 1997 – 2000 . With new ownership of the franchise , Angelo moved on to the Chicago Bears . Chicago Bears . Angelo became the Chicago Bears ' general manager in 2001 . After firing Dick Jauron , Angelo sought a new coach . The short list was Nick Saban , Russ Grimm , and Lovie Smith . Nick Saban was the frontrunner , but wanted the GM powers Angelo just acquired . Saban went on to a short tenure with the Miami Dolphins prior to returning to college football . Russ Grimm was the second choice but was not hired . Lovie Smith was hired by Angelo as the coach of the Chicago Bears in 2004 . The Bears went from 5 – 11 in 2004 , to 11 – 6 in 2005 ( including a playoff loss to the Carolina Panthers ) to a team in 2006 that went 15 – 4 after losing Super Bowl XLI to the Indianapolis Colts . Angelo was ranked as the eighth best general manager in professional sports in February 2007 . Following the 2007 Super Bowl run , the Bears were mired in player personnel controversies . First , many players , media and fans were upset that head coach Lovie Smith was not given a contract extension , despite being the lowest paid head coach in the NFL and taking his team to the Super Bowl . The Bears eventually relented , granting Smith a 4 year extension after at times bitter negotiations . Then , Angelo traded his leading rusher and locker room favorite , Thomas Jones , plus the Bears 2nd round draft pick , for the Jets second round draft pick . Further dampering the Bears off - season was a prolonged contract battle with star linebacker Lance Briggs , who eventually had the franchise tag placed on him . 2007 . The 2007 season saw the Bears go 7 – 9 and miss the playoffs . Angelo entered the offseason with the mentality that " free agency begins at home . " Rather than pursuing the league ' s top free agents , Angelo focused the team ' s resources on securing players that were already members of the team , including Lance Briggs , Alex Brown , Tommie Harris , Kyle Orton , Rex Grossman , and Devin Hester . He also chose to part with running back Cedric Benson , and replaced him with Matt Forte , whom the team drafted out of Tulane with the 44th overall pick of the 2008 NFL Draft . 2008 . The Chicago Bears drafted Chris Williams , a left offensive tackle from Vanderbilt University with the fourteenth overall pick of the 2008 NFL Draft . On 24 July 2008 , the second day of the 2008 Chicago Bears Training Camp , Williams was forced to leave practice due to back spasms . On 7 August 2008 , Chris Williams underwent surgery to repair a herniated disk in his back . The controversy began when on 24 August 2008 , it became known that Chicago Bears doctors knew Chris Williams had a herniated disk in his back prior to drafting him , yet took an unwise and risky gamble and decided to draft him anyway . Williams eventually began playing with the Bears in November , but received a limited role . The 2008 Chicago Bears finished with a 9 – 7 record , and missed the playoffs after losing their season finale to the Houston Texans . After the season conclusion , Angelo parted with many of the team ' s defensive coaches , and hired Rod Marinelli . He also commented on the team ' s need to acquire a stable quarterback , dismissing rumors that Kyle Orton was the franchise ' s long - term solution . In an interview in January 2009 , he stated , “ It ’ s all about the quarterback . . . You don ’ t win because of wide receivers . You don ’ t win because of running backs . You win because of the quarterback . We have to get that position stabilized . We ’ re fixated on that . ” 2009 . In March 2009 , Angelo , along with several other NFL teams , expressed interest in acquiring Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler from the Denver Broncos . Cutler , who had spent three years with Denver , requested to be traded after head coach Josh McDaniels considered replacing him with Matt Cassel . On April 2 , Angelo made one of the biggest trades in the franchise ' s history by trading Kyle Orton , the Bears ' first and third - round selections in 2009 , and first - round pick in 2010 for Cutler , plus a fifth round pick . On the same day , the Bears also signed seven - time Pro Bowl tackle Orlando Pace . Despite the high profile trades , the Bears went 7 - 9 and again missed the playoffs . The Bears held a press - conference after the season to explain the team ' s future direction . Ted Phillips , the Bears president , confirmed that neither Angelo nor Lovie Smith would be dismissed for the teams disappointing finish . 2010 . A clause in the 2006 collective bargaining agreement with the NFL established that there would be no salary cap in 2010 . Thus , teams would be able to spend as much money as they wanted towards their players ' salaries without having to worry about penalties or restrictions . On the first day of free agency , the Bears signed Pro Bowl defensive end Julius Peppers , running back Chester Taylor , and tight end Brandon Manumaleuna . Angelo hired Mike Martz to replace Ron Turner as the Bears offensive coordinator , and promoted defensive line coach Rod Marinelli to defensive coordinator . 2011 . Angelo was fired by the Bears on January 3 , 2012 . The reason for his firing was due to a combination of poor drafting and questionable free agent signings , with the team stating they wanted to " close a talent gap " to stay competitive with the rival Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions in the NFC North . He leaves with an 87 - 73 regular season record , and 3 - 4 playoff record as the Bears General Manager . He was succeeded by Phil Emery on January 29 , 2012 .