HEADLINES

Chicago Bears News & Rumors

Broncos, Other Teams Interested In Darren Rizzi For ST Coordinator

January 21st, 2025 at 12:26pm CST by Adam La Rose

Darren Rizzi does not appear to be on track to land one of the remaining head coaching positions in this year’s hiring cycle. The Saints’ special teams coordinator is nevertheless an in-demand staffer at the moment.

In the wake of the Bears reaching an agreement with Ben Johnson to become their next head coach, it was learned Rizzi is on the team’s radar. He is a candidate to serve as Chicago’s special teams coordinator moving forward, something which would displace incumbent Richard Hightower. The Bears could have competition for Rizzi’s services, though.

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune notes the Broncos are attempting to hire Rizzi for their own special teams coordinator position. Denver moved on from Ben Kotwica last week after he spent two seasons in that role. Head coach Sean Payton has been in place with the Broncos since the start of the 2023 campaign, but in that time he has made several moves aimed to reuniting with players and coaches from his time with the Saints. As a result, Rizzi was named as a candidate to watch closely once Kotwica was dismissed.

Biggs adds that two other teams also “believed to be in the mix” for Rizzi. The 54-year-old took over as New Orleans’ interim head coach after Dennis Allen was fired. The two could reunite in Chicago (in the event Allen were to take over as defensive coordinator), but Rizzi is still in contention for the Saints’ head coaching position. Lions DC Aaron Glenn has a second HC interview lined up, although he appears to be on track to take charge of the Jets if things go according to plan. Provided that turns out to be the case, Rizzi will still be in the running for New Orleans as well as outside ST coordinator gigs.

According to Biggs, it is unclear at this point how likely it is that Rizzi could come to Chicago. For the time being, Hightower remains in place and Biggs notes he could be retained as part of Johnson’s initial Bears staff. The team showed improvement in the third phase down the stretch that year, and it will be interesting to see if Johnson opts for continuity for 2025.

Bears Hire Ben Johnson As HC

January 20th, 2025 at 11:12pm CST by Sam Robinson

No second interviews are coming for Ben Johnson, after all. The coveted coordinator has made his choice, with ESPN’s Adam Schefter reporting the Bears are expected to reach an agreement with the three-year Lions play-caller. The deal is now official, per a team announcement.

Although Johnson had stepped away as the Panthers’ preferred candidate in 2023 and then informed the Commanders late in last year’s process he was out, the Bears will land the coach who had been viewed by many as this year’s biggest fish. This represents one of the more significant developments in modern Bears history, as they had been connected to the rival coordinator for months.

As of Sunday, the Jaguars and Raiders were still in pursuit. Johnson had spoken to Tom Brady for hours during a Zoom meeting, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reports, but the Las Vegas setup had a notable hole the Chicago gig does not. The Bears used the Bryce Young trade to acquire the 2024 No. 1 overall pick, giving them Caleb Williams access. They have now secured a coach to develop the well-regarded prospect. The Raiders have yet to identify a quarterback, with Brady tasked with helping the organization land one. Las Vegas also dropped to the No. 6 pick thanks to two late-season wins, which may well have been a factor in this now-Brady-led HC search.

The Jaguars’ setup is not in line with what Johnson preferred, Russini adds, helping to eliminate them. Jacksonville made the unexpected move to keep Trent Baalke as GM after firing Doug Pederson. Baalke’s polarizing presence was believed to have turned off some coaching candidates, and it appears Johnson was one of them. The Jags were believed to be open to moving Baalke to a different position in the organization depending on their HC hire, as they prepared an aggressive Johnson push, but that may not have been enough to satisfy a coordinator with options.

The Bears may be zeroing in on a defensive coordinator as well. As Russini reported, both Dennis Allen and Lou Anarumo had engaged in discussions about potentially joining Johnson wherever he landed. Johnson is expected to choose Allen, and Anarumo just committed to be the Colts’ DC. Allen has indeed emerged as a prime candidate to follow Johnson to Chicago, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports. Allen was in charge of the Saints’ defense from 2016-24, before being fired during his third season as head coach. Though, the ex-Sean Payton assistant — Aaron Glenn‘s boss in New Orleans — played the lead role in turning the Saints’ defense around during Drew Brees‘ final seasons.

Baalke’s Jacksonville presence may not be too dissimilar to how Chicago’s power structure looks now. Candidates were curious about what role third-year president Kevin Warren would play. While Warren had said GM Ryan Poles was running what turned out to be an expansive search — featuring nearly 20 confirmed candidates — the team president was believed to be closely involved in football operations. Advertised as an exec who would primarily stay on the business side, Warren has been instead heavily involved in football matters.

This setup still did enough for Johnson, who will work with Poles in attempting to restore the Bears as a power in a strong division. It should also be noted (h/t Fox Sports’ Peter Schrager) Poles and Johnson were each Boston College graduate assistants in the late 2000s. Poles served on the football staff in 2008 after his playing career ended, while Johnson was at BC from 2009-10.

Dan Campbell said earlier today he did not expect either Johnson or Glenn to return. Glenn remains a candidate with several HC-needy teams, but Johnson has loomed as Detroit’s more coveted option. His decision to back out of the Commanders’ job came as reps from the NFC East club were en route to Detroit for interviews with he and Glenn. Rather than hire Glenn, Washington chose Dan Quinn.

The latter’s team just eliminated Johnson’s from the playoffs, freeing the Bears up to make their preferred hire now rather than wait at least another week. Had the Lions held seed and advanced to Super Bowl LIX, the Bears would have needed to wait until after the mid-February event to make their hire.

The Lions’ shortcoming will benefit the Bears, who have not been able to firmly establish themselves as a contender since at least the mid-2000s. And that defense-powered operation only stayed afloat on that level for two seasons. The Bears have not made three straight playoff berths since Mike Ditka‘s tenure more than 30 years ago. The offensive minds the Bears have hired in the recent past (Marc Trestman, Matt Nagy) have not been able to move the needle, Nagy’s two playoff berths notwithstanding. Johnson, however, checks in as a candidate on a higher plane by comparison to those two HCs or really any coach the Bears have hired in recent history.

Although the Lions did not book three straight playoff berths during Johnson’s tenure, they may well be on their way to that. Detroit’s hotshot OC, promoted from a post as tight ends coach after being hired by Matt Patricia, played a central role in the long-downtrodden organization’s climb. The innovative play-caller drove Detroit to two fifth-place offensive rankings and this season’s top mark in terms of scoring. The Lions ranked in the top four in yardage in each of Johnson’s three seasons calling plays.

Johnson, 38, restored Jared Goff as an upper-crust quarterback, doing so after the Lions had acquired the five-year Rams starter as the throw-in piece in the 2021 Matthew Stafford trade. Goff guided Detroit to last year’s AFC championship game and a 15-2 record this season. Johnson was seen as the architect of that resurgence.

Whereas Trestman was given Jay Cutler and Nagy mostly Mitchell Trubisky, Johnson will be tasked with developing Williams. It looks like he chose a Williams partnership over seeing what Brady could come up with in Vegas or working with Trevor Lawrence — and a $55MM-per-year contract — in Jacksonville. Williams ranked 28th in QBR this season, one in which the Bears had Thomas Brown move to three positions — pass-game coordinator, OC and interim HC — during a disjointed campaign marred by a 10-game losing streak. Williams showed a Justin Fields-like penchant for taking sacks, leading the NFL with 68. But the former Heisman winner also showed flashes that attracted candidates; he is signed through at least 2026 on a rookie contract.

This Johnson hire will be the Bears’ aim to maximize their Williams investment, and the team having D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze signed long term undoubtedly helped woo the picky HC candidate. The Raiders and Jags will need to pivot to other options, while the Bears stand to immediately become more interesting in a division in which they finished five games behind the third-place Packers. Johnson will get to work at attempting to reel in his former employer and a Vikings team that just went 14-3.

Via PFR’s HC Search Tracker, here is how the long-running Chicago HC search wrapped up:

Colts Add Lou Anarumo As DC

January 20th, 2025 at 11:08pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the news coming out of Chicago will probably be the biggest across the NFL today, the Colts have identified their next defensive coordinator. Lou Anarumo is the pick, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. The team has since confirmed the news.

Anarumo and Dennis Allen had been discussing the possibility of joining Ben Johnson wherever he landed, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini adds. While the new Bears HC is expected to choose Allen to be his top defensive assistant, Anarumo will make an early jump to Indianapolis. Allen was also a Colts interviewee.

The Chicago component here helps explain why Indianapolis moved so quickly with Anarumo. But the former HC candidate figured to have more options as soon as other teams hired coaches. The ex-Bengals defensive boss had already met with the Falcons about their vacancy, but Atlanta went with Jets interim HC Jeff Ulbrich. That cleared a path for the Colts, who will replace Gus Bradley with another DC with considerable experience in the role.

Anarumo, 58, had devised a plan to cool off Patrick Mahomes and a then-elite Chiefs offense to help the Bengals to an upset in the 2021 AFC championship game. While he was unable to match that feat in the teams’ rematch a year later, the Bengals had entered the 2022 AFC title game ranked sixth in scoring defense. This came after the team went toe-to-toe with the Rams in Super Bowl LVI. Not too many HC looks emerged, however, as Anarumo only met with the Giants (2022) and Cardinals (2023). The Colts had passed on such a meeting, but they will pair Anarumo with Shane Steichen after Bradley’s defense had become somewhat stale.

After Matt Eberflus had engineered three top-10 defensive finishes in his four seasons, Bradley had seen his troops rank 28th, 28th and 24th in points allowed during his three seasons at the helm. The former Jaguars HC and four-time DC coached a similar cast from 2023-24, with GM Chris Ballard continuing to focus on retaining players rather than pursuing outside help. The results did not produce success, potentially leading to a philosophical shift. Bradley’s unit bottomed out in Week 17, when a 45-point outing from a basement-level Giants team eliminated the Colts from playoff contention.

While Anarumo is also coming off a down season (25th in point and yardage), as the Bengals’ defense effectively kept an MVP-caliber Joe Burrow season from even producing a wild-card berth, he has been a well-regarded option for a while. Anarumo spent more than 20 years in the college ranks but has now been an NFL assistant for 13 years. He coached Dolphins DBs under Joe Philbin and Adam Gase, moving to the Giants for a one-year tenure as their secondary coach in 2018. The Colts will sign off on a quick second chance as a DC, keeping one of the higher-profile options off the market for the five teams that still need to hire HCs.

Via PFR’s Offensive/Defensive Coordinator Search Tracker, here is how Indy’s process concluded:

  • Dennis Allen, former head coach (New Orleans Saints): Interviewed 1/17
  • Lou Anarumo, former defensive coordinator (Cincinnati Bengals): Hired
  • Ephraim Banda, safeties coach (Cleveland Browns): Interviewed 1/10
  • Wink Martindale, defensive coordinator (Michigan): Interviewed 1/15
  • Steve Wilks, former defensive coordinator (San Francisco 49ers): Interviewed

Bears Eyeing Darren Rizzi For ST Coordinator

January 20th, 2025 at 10:57pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

After winning the multi-team competition for Ben Johnson‘s services, the Bears are moving quickly to fill their new head coach’s staff.

Upon hiring Johnson, the Bears quickly became connected to having Dennis Allen as their lead defensive coordinator candidate. Allen’s interim successor in New Orleans, Darren Rizzi, is drawing interest from the Bears as well. Rizzi is drawing interest from the Bears, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who adds six teams are believed to be in pursuit of the veteran special teams coordinator.

Chicago is one of several teams pursuing Rizzi this offseason. The Saints and the Jets interviewed him for their head coach vacancies, while others, like the Bears, would hire him as their special teams coordinator.

Rizzi was hired as the Saints’ special teams coordinator in 2019 under Sean Payton and added assistant head coach to his title when Allen replaced Payton in 2022. When the Saints’ ownership fired Allen after a frustrating 2-7 start to the season, they tapped Rizzi to close out the year. He won three of his first four games as head coach before dropping four straight to finish the season.

The 54-year-old is not seen as a top candidate to stick around in New Orleans or fill the vacancy in New York, but he will almost certainly be a special teams coordinator somewhere next offseason. Outside of this past season, the Saints have finished with a top-eight special teams grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) every year since Rizzi joined the staff.

While he may be able to choose from a few offers, the job in Chicago has obvious appeal. Rizzi can reunite with Allen under an exciting, young coach in Johnson, all while working for one of the most storied franchises in league history.

Lions OC Ben Johnson ‘Deeply Considering’ Bears’ HC Position?

January 20th, 2025 at 2:27pm CST by Adam La Rose

Ben Johnson is free to meet in person with interested teams, something he could do in multiple cases over the coming days. The in-demand Lions offensive coordinator is known to be a key target of the Raiders, Jaguars and Bears.

Vegas is expected to produce a major offer — something which the team does not need to wait for now that the Lions’ season is over — but Jacksonville and Chicago are of course still in the mix until Johnson makes a final call. Reports from last week indicated the 38-year-old is interested in Jacksonville’s opening. The same apparently remains true for Chicago.

Johnson is believed to be “deeply considering” the Bears’ head coaching position, Bovada’s Josina Anderson reports. He was among the first candidates to conduct an an initial (virtual) interview with Chicago’s search committee, although that was of course also the case with several other interested teams. Still, it comes as no surprise the Bears’ wide-ranging search has not concluded with Johnson still on the market.

On Monday, Lions head coach Dan Campbell admitted he expects both Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to find one of the six current head coaching vacancies around the league. Johnson will move to schedule second interviews with teams, though The Athletic’s Dianna Russini cautions he is not a lock to meet with all three teams. Those he does huddle up with in person can safely assume the high-profile HC candidate remains interested in an elusive commitment.

The Bears have been in pursuit of Johnson since the fall, and a December report suggested the three-year Lions OC was “intrigued” by this job. Johnson, 38, would be a strong choice to mentor Caleb Williams. Conversely, Williams — who is tied to a rookie contract through at least 2026, creating roster-building opportunities — should be a draw for candidates. The 2024 top pick’s presence separates this job from the Jaguars and Raiders’ openings. Trevor Lawrence is now on a $55MM-per-year deal without having established himself as a surefire franchise-level passer, while the Raiders remain in search of an option at the game’s premier position — and their two late-season wins dropped them to sixth in the draft order.

Johnson remains tied to both his AFC suitors. He may well be the top choice for each of these three HC-needy franchises. With the Commanders knocking off the Lions in the divisional round, this will be an interesting week — from a long-term perspective — for the Bears, Jags and Raiders. The Bears made a last-ditch sales pitch to Mike Vrabel before he committed to the Patriots. Their last chance with Johnson appears to be coming soon.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post

Bears Interview Eddie George For HC Job

January 19th, 2025 at 11:19pm CST by Rory Parks

As GM Ryan Poles promised at the outset of the Bears’ current head coaching search, the club has been rather thorough in exploring its HC options (as seen in our head coaching search tracker). Chicago is now adding a surprising name to its long list of candidates, as Jay Glazer of FOX Sports reports that the team is scheduled to interview Eddie George for the position this morning.

Before today, the 51-year-old had only been mentioned in passing in PFR pages. Once one of the top running backs in the collegiate and professional ranks, George’s illustrious playing career ended in 2003, and while he was with the Bears during 2023 OTAs as part of the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship (h/t ESPN’s Courtney Cronin), he has never drawn publicly-reported interest for a coaching job at the NFL level.

In 2021, George became the head coach of FCS program Tennessee State, and as Glazer observes, the 1996 Heisman Trophy winner and four-time Pro Bowler led the team to a conference co-championship in 2024 and was named the OVC-Big South Coach of the Year for his efforts. Still, it is a far cry from that position to an NFL head coaching position.

George, whose post-playing career includes an MBA from Northwestern University and a role in a Broadway production of (appropriately enough) Chicago, is clearly a dark horse for the Bears’ HC post. Nonetheless, he made enough of an impression in his current job – and perhaps during his time with the team in 2023 – to merit some level of consideration.

Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has long been viewed as one of the most attractive HC candidates available in this year’s cycle – just as he was in each of the past two years – and since Detroit’s season surprisingly came to an end by virtue of last night’s divisional round loss to the Commanders, Johnson can now take in-person summits with interested clubs. The same is true of Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who (like Johnson) interviewed virtually with the Bears on January 11.

We heard just yesterday that, if the Lions should be upset by Washington, there could be a flurry of head coaching activity as teams rush to conduct in-person sit-downs with Johnson and Glenn. A source tells Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune that Johnson could have his pick of the Bears’, Raiders’, or Jaguars’ jobs, and while recent buzz has suggested Johnson could be Las Vegas-bound, it appears that all three clubs are still in the mix. 

Biggs adds that former Packers and Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, whose contract with Dallas was allowed to expire last week and who interviewed with Chicago one day later, has a “legitimate shot” at the Bears’ gig.

Updated 2025 NFL Draft Order

January 19th, 2025 at 10:00pm CST by Ely Allen

Two weekends of playoff football have come and gone, providing us with 10 more draft slots cemented into position as NFL teams continue to be eliminated from the playoffs. The top 18 picks were already divvied up at the conclusion of the regular season to the teams who failed to make the playoffs, while picks 19-28 have been determined over the past two weeks.

For non-playoff teams, the draft order has been determined by the inverted 2024 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. The playoff squads are being slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular-season record.

The league’s Super Wild Card weekend resulted in the elimination of Chargers, Steelers, Broncos, Packers, Buccaneers, and Vikings after their respective losses. Tampa Bay benefitted from the three-way tie in record with Denver and Pittsburgh, just as the Chargers did over the Packers.

The divisional round of the playoffs resulted in the elimination of the Texans, Rams, Ravens, and Lions. This time, Houston held the tiebreaker over Los Angeles, gifting it higher draft priority.

We are still at a place that, for the first time since the league expanded to 32 teams in 2002, there is a chance that every team drafts in the first round, as no first-round picks have yet been traded. It’s extremely unlikely that this will remain the case, as draft-day trades are a very common occurrence, but it’s still an interesting concept to note this close to the draft.

Here is how the draft order looks following two weeks of playoff football:

  1. Tennessee Titans (3-14)
  2. Cleveland Browns (3-14)
  3. New York Giants (3-14)
  4. New England Patriots (4-13)
  5. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13)
  6. Las Vegas Raiders (4-13)
  7. New York Jets (5-12)
  8. Carolina Panthers (5-12)
  9. New Orleans Saints (5-12)
  10. Chicago Bears (5-12)
  11. San Francisco (6-11)
  12. Dallas Cowboys (7-10)
  13. Miami Dolphins (8-9)
  14. Indianapolis Colts (8-9)
  15. Atlanta Falcons (8-9)
  16. Arizona Cardinals (8-9)
  17. Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)
  18. Seattle Seahawks (10-7)
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7)
  20. Denver Broncos (10-7)
  21. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
  22. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
  23. Green Bay Packers (11-6)
  24. Minnesota Vikings (14-3)
  25. Houston Texans (10-7)
  26. Los Angeles Rams (10-7)
  27. Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
  28. Detroit Lions (15-2)
  29. Washington Commanders (12-5)
  30. Buffalo Bills (13-4)
  31. Philadelphia Eagles (14-3)
  32. Kansas City Chiefs (15-2)

Todd Monken Interviews Go Well; Previous HC Experience Helping

January 19th, 2025 at 6:43pm CST by Ely Allen

Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken is currently calling one of the most important games of his coaching career, something he spent almost all week preparing for. Unfortunately, he had to spend any free time he had interviewing for what could be the biggest jobs of his career. Despite the distraction of the playoffs, Monken has done well in his interviews, thanks, in part, to his previous experience as a head coach at the collegiate level, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.

Firstly, Monken commiserated with fans, lamenting that he was being forced to split his attention between two outstanding opportunities: the chance to continue competing for a Super Bowl and the chance to coach an NFL team for the first time in his career. Still, he understood the necessity of the situation while the NFL presumably seeks a solution to the conflict.

The plus is that the Ravens’ performance in the playoffs acts as a sort of supplement to his interviews, giving NFL teams a real-life example of what his coaching and leadership can lead to. As long as the Ravens and quarterback Lamar Jackson continue to put up impressive performances against the league’s best, Monken will continue to improve his chances at landing an opportunity to be a head coach in the NFL.

As much as his current performance is factoring in, the teams interviewing him have been looking into his past, as well. Monken has extensive experience as an offensive coordinator for three different universities and three different NFL teams, but he also has three years of experience as the head coach at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Monken took over a Southern Miss program in 2013 that had just fired Ellis Johnson following an 0-12 season. With an offensive nucleus of Nick Mullens at quarterback and Ito Smith and Jalen Richard at running back, Monken gradually turned the Golden Eagles around. A 1-11 debut improved to a 3-9 second year at his post before, ultimately, Monken had the team in the conference championship game with a 9-3 regular season record. As impressive as Monken’s recent experience as a coordinator is, his record turning around a winless team in college as a head coach is perhaps just as impressive.

Monken participated in two interviews this week. His first interview was with the Jaguars, who are currently considering him and 10 other candidates for the position. All of those candidates are former coordinators in the league, while four of the candidates have former head coaching experience in the NFL, as well.

His second interview was with the Bears who have no shortage of candidates. Chicago has interviewed 17 candidates so far and have plans to interview three more; they had two other candidates who turned down requests to interview. The candidates include former NFL head coaches (Pete Carroll, Brian Flores, Kliff Kingsbury, Mike McCarthy, Ron Rivera, and Arthur Smith), NFL coordinators (Joe Brady, Aaron Glenn, Ben Johnson, Mike Kafka, Drew Petzing, and Adam Stenavich), and current and former college head coaches (Matt Campbell, Marcus Freeman, Eddie George, and David Shaw), so Monken’s litany of experience gets a bit drowned out in comparison to the other candidates for the Bears’ job.

Monken currently has a lot on his plate in the NFL playoffs. He also has an interview planned with the Raiders. When he’s done padding his résumé this postseason, it will boast his playoff experience as a coordinator. Just as valuable will be his experience turning a winless college team into a winner as a college head coach.

Bears QB Caleb Williams Undergoes Minor Wrist Surgery

January 19th, 2025 at 4:57pm CST by Adam La Rose

Caleb Williams‘ offseason development will be key for the Bears’ chances of taking a step forward next year. Chicago’s franchise quarterback is set to be fully healthy for 2025, but he did undergo a recent procedure.

Williams had a minor elective surgery on his right (i.e. throwing) wrist, ESPN’s Courtney Cronin reports. The procedure removed a cyst. The recovery period in this case is not expected to impact the No. 1 pick’s offseason schedule.

To no surprise, Williams immediately handled starting duties to begin his rookie campaign. The Oklahoma and USC product did not have the season he or the team hoped for, with a midseason coaching change and inconsistent performances resulting in a 5-12 record. Williams was not listed with a wrist ailment at any point during the year, which explains why this surgery has only taken place after the end of the campaign.

The Bears are one of six teams currently in need of a new head coach, and developing Williams is an obvious priority for the organization. The 23-year-old seemed to take a step forward when Thomas Brown was promoted to offensive coordinator, although shortly thereafter Brown took over from Matt Eberflus as head coach. An interview for the full-time gig has taken place, but Chicago is looking into a long list of outside candidates as well.

Regardless of which direction the Bears ultimately go in on the sidelines, Williams’ ability to build off his rookie showing will be a major storyline for the team moving forward. He managed a 62.5% completion percentage and a 20:6 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 2024, adding 489 rushing yards. On the other hand, Williams was sacked a league-leading 68 times and improving his decision-making in the pocket (along with upgrades along the offensive line) will be imperative in the future.

Provided his wrist heals in full as expected, though, Williams will be able to take part in Chicago’s offseason program without any injury concerns. Once a coaching hire is made, attention will turn to the team’s roster-building efforts through the spring in preparation for Year 2 of Williams handling QB1 duties.

Bears Denied Meeting With Steelers HC Mike Tomlin

January 18th, 2025 at 11:17pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bears continue to leave no stone unturned in their search for a new head coach. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Bears reached out to the Steelers about head coach Mike Tomlin.

Specifically, the Bears asked if they “would be allowed to talk to and potentially try to trade” for Tomlin. That inquiry was ultimately rebuffed by the Steelers. The Bears apparently weren’t the only team to ask about Tomlin; per Schefter, another squad checked in with the Steelers.

While the Steelers would obviously have a major say in a potential Tomlin ouster, it sounds like the coach also has the ability to control his future. Per Schefter, Tomlin possesses a no-trade clause, so any potential suitors would face multiple hurdles if they were serious about a pursuit.

The Bears have been especially aggressive in their search for a new head coach. The team has interviewed or requested an interview with some of this cycle’s most popular candidates, ranging from hot shot coordinators like Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn to long-time head coach Pete Carroll. The team has even looked towards the college ranks, with a recent report indicating that the Bears wanted to interview Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman.

As our 2025 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker shows, the Bears have either interviewed or requested interviews with 17 candidates, and there are a handful of additional options that have been connected to the organization. Considering the team’s wide search, it isn’t a surprise that they took a swing at Tomlin. This report also indicates that the Bears wouldn’t be shy about making a trade for a HC. ESPN’s Courtney Cronin notes that Bears GM Ryan Poles was apparently sincere when he said the team would “look at all avenues to get the best coach” in Chicago.

Tomlin would represent one of the most experienced and accomplished coaching options for the Bears. He’s served as the Steelers head coach since the 2007 campaign, and he’s famously never had a losing season during his 18 years in Pittsburgh. This run has included 12 playoff appearances, including a Super Bowl championship during his second season on the sideline. More recently, the veteran coach has drawn criticism for the Steelers’ lack of postseason success. The team has made the playoffs in four of the past five years, with each of those appearances resulting in a one-and-done showing.

Load More Posts