The Bears will be in the market for a new head coach this offseason, and per Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the club believes its vacancy is the most attractive one that will be available. With a promising rookie-contract quarterback in Caleb Williams and a bevy of other offensive talent, over $80MM in projected salary cap space, and a new stadium project in the offing, Chicago is hopeful it will be able to land the candidate of its choice.
According to Jones, the Bears hope to hire a “leader of men” type of head coach. In other words, the candidate’s status as an offensive or defensive savant will not be as much of a priority as that person’s mental toughness and leadership abilities. The successes of Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh and Dan Campbell in Detroit have underscored the importance of those qualities, and recent HC hirees Raheem Morris, Dan Quinn, Jerod Mayo, and Jim Harbaugh also fit the “leader of men” mold (although those coaches, like almost all coaches, also offer an offensive or defensive background).
Scott Bair of the Marquee Sports Network agrees that leadership skills, along with in-game management prowess, are traits the Bears will be seeking in their next HC. However, Bair does believe that a brilliant offensive mind, or someone that can bring such a mind on board, will also be a prerequisite, which jibes with earlier reports on the matter. He names Mike Vrabel, Ben Johnson, Kliff Kingsbury, Aaron Glenn, and Joe Brady as external HC candidates, while Jones adds Brian Flores and Bill Belichick as possible targets. As reported previously, interim head coach Thomas Brown will also have a chance at the permanent gig.
Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network (video link) acknowledges that the Bears’ opening will be coveted, and he also believes that Kingsbury will be under consideration. Of course, the team interviewed the former Cardinals’ HC this past offseason for its offensive coordinator post, although it was reported that the summit was really more of an intel-gathering session on Williams, whom Kingsbury coached at USC and whom the Bears were preparing to select with the No. 1 overall pick of this year’s draft. Naturally, the Kingsbury-Williams connection will drive a great deal of Kingsbury-Chicago speculation during the upcoming cycle.
Johnson, meanwhile, will again be one of the hottest candidates on the market, and he is expected to remain very selective about his next destination. On that note, ESPN’s Adam Schefter previously said that Johnson could opt to steer clear of the Bears due to perceived organizational dysfunction, although Schefter may have changed his stance. During his appearance on Sunday NFL Countdown today, Schefter said that Johnson might indeed have some interest in the Chicago job (video link).
Jones and Peter Schrager of FOX Sports (video link) also see Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman as a dark horse candidate for the Bears’ HC post. Freeman, who was actually drafted by the Bears in the fifth round of the 2009 draft, has led the Fighting Irish to an 11-1 record and a likely spot in the College Football Playoff field in his first year at the helm. Freeman was recently named as one of the college coaches expected to receive NFL HC interest in 2025.
Per Jones, it is unclear who will make the final decision on the club’s next HC. Of course, owner George McCaskey will have considerable input, but team president Kevin Warren will be heavily involved as well. One way or another, though, GM Ryan Poles’ job is safe, and he will be a part of the search.
There were some recent rumblings that Poles could be handed his walking papers at season’s end, but prior reports indicated that Poles and Warren are aligned in their vision for the team, and both Jones and Rapoport report that the GM – who was originally hired just two days before the recently-dismissed Matt Eberflus – will be retained. Interestingly, Rapoport says that Poles will “assist” Warren in running the search, which would seem to corroborate the league-wide perception that Warren is the one making the calls.
My beloved Bears are a national joke. The McCaskeys’s need to sell the team, Poles and Warren should both be launched into the Sun. If I was the Bears owner, I’d hire Mike Vrabel as HC, offer Ben Johnson a blank contract to be OC and Asst Head Coach, and offer the painted-nails diva QB to anyone dumb enough to take him (yes, the Bears should have taken Daniels or Maye with the first pick, Caleb is a franchise killing bust in waiting and after the Colts selection of Richardson, is going to rank right up there with Ryan Leaf as draft misses) Then I’d draft as many o-lineman as possible, and live with Bagent as QB1 for a couple years
Why in the world would Ben Johnson leave the Lions for the same position on the trash heap that’s the Bears organization. This whole comment is absolutely idiotic but the Ben Johnson part is hilarious.
As a Panthers fan, I think you’re crazy for wanting Poles fired. Dude fleeced Carolina in the Bryce Young trade and it’s still coming in (next year’s 2nd rounder).
What a stupid statement about Caleb Williams. We’ll see who has the best career. Caleb Williams behind the Washington OL would have superior statistics over Daniel’s.
Thank you for letting us all know that you don’t know ball.
You’re comment shows why you’ll never be a NFL GM
Guess they weren’t looking for “leadership ability” in last HC hire ?
Clueless franchise. A total clown show.
Just ask the people running the White Sox how they would proceed…then do the exact opposite. Problem solved 🙂
So leadership was not a priority for prior head coaches? Great work.
Freeman would be an excellent choice to coach the Bears.
Two questions for you…
1) Have you woken from your drunken stupor yet?
2) Sincerely, what planet are you from anyway?
Thank you!
I’ll patiently wait for your response, if you can respond, that is.