Bears head coach search could pick up speed with Ben Johnson available
The Bears have grinding through an extensive coaching search, interviewing a massive number of prospective candidates. Some of them have a solid chance to get the job in Chicago. Others, not so much.
The Bears haven’t been able to hire any of them to this point. That changed on Sunday morning, after an in-person interview with Eddie George was completed. The Tennessee State head coach was the second external minority candidate to interview with the Bears in-person – Ron Rivera was the other – therefore satisfying the NFL’s Rooney Rule.
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The Bears can actively pursue and hire a candidate. That includes Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who can interview in person following Detroit’s 45-31 loss to the Washington Commanders on Saturday night.
Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn’s in that boat, too, and is a strong candidate for several head-coach openings.
Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury – he’ll reportedly wait to interview until Washington’s campaign – remains ineligible for hire. So are Baltimore OC Todd Monken and Buffalo OC Joe Brady, though one of them will come free after the Bills and Ravens face off later Sunday night.
Outside that trio, the Bears are free to conduct an in-person interview with anyone they’re spoken with to this point, and the college coaches they’ve requested time with.
The immediate focus, however, is on Johnson.
The Raiders are pushing hard for his services. They’re interviewing Commanders assistant GM David Newmark, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who worked in Detroit for 26 seasons and knows Johnson (and Glenn) well. Alignment with a general manager is reportedly important for Johnson, and hiring Newmark would check that box in a big way, both in a personal connection and likely in contractual length.
That’s not something the Bears can offer in equal measure with general manager Ryan Poles in place and possibly close to the end of his current contract. There are other ways to land the plane, and the Bears will surely push Caleb Williams’ presence, plus the Bears’ plentiful salary-cap space and quality draft capital, plus the opportunity to turn things around far faster than Johnson could in Las Vegas.
It’s uncertain if that will work. The Bears can also get active with Mike McCarthy, who has already been to Halas Hall and is reportedly set to visit the New Orleans Saints this week.
The Bears are clearly moving forward with a multi-pronged attack to find a new head coach, not just waiting with fingers crossed hoping Johnson chooses Chicago. That was evident Saturday, when an ESPN report chronicled the Bears denied request to speak with and possibly trade for Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
The Bears can start conducting in-person interviews with candidates with concluded season after the divisional round concludes on Sunday evening. That could push other names to the forefront of a search with some solid options outside of Johnson. That’s when we’ll know how the Bears evaluated a long first-round of interviews.
It sure seems like much of this coaching search, for the Bears and other teams, hinges on the Johnson decision. There’s no telling how long it’ll take him to make a choice, or whether he’ll throw a wrench into things and return to Detroit.
The Bears are now in the second phase of their coach hire, where a slow-as-heck process will pick up some speed. That doesn’t mean we’ll have a hire imminently, but the possibility is now there to make a bold move and secure their next head coach.