No matter who the next Chicago Bears head coach is, few things are more important than whether or not he’ll be able to build a strong enough staff. Make no mistake that the choices of offensive and defensive coordinator can prove vital to success. Ask John Fox. He got it right with Adam Gase in 2015 but blundered with his promotion of Dowell Loggains in 2016. Sometimes it’s little decisions like that which can turn a tenure south quick.
So what about the top potential candidates of 2018? What sort of staffs could they put together were the Bears to hire one of them. Here’s an overview of the biggest names and who their choices could end up being. Keep in mind we’re keeping this just to the offensive and defensive coordinator positions.
Jim Harbaugh
OC: Freddie Kitchens
One of the great things about Harbaugh is he always has an eye out for coaching talent from other teams, including regular opponents. He will no doubt have noticed the work done by Freddie Kitchens when his San Francisco 49ers played the Arizona Cardinals twice a year. Since 2007 Kitchens has served as tight ends, quarterbacks and running backs coach for them. The fact he was retained in 2013 when the Cardinals changed head coaches says a lot. Under his guidance Carson Palmer was reborn, having two of the best seasons of his career in 2015 and 2016. Kitchens is ready for the next step.
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DC: Vic Fangio
The hiring of Harbaugh has plenty of caveats but the biggest by far would be the likely chance to retain current Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. The two have a long history dating back to 2010 when they worked together at Stanford before going up to San Francisco and having an outstanding run there. Fangio has said he likes offensive coaches who take an interest in defense and few do that more than Harbaugh.
Josh McDaniels
OC: Chad O’Shea
Given the fact McDaniels will likely direct the offense himself, the odds say he’ll bring a young assistant with him from New England. Somebody he trusts. Chad O’Shea has been the Patriots wide receivers coach since 2009. In that time he’s done a phenomenal job developing weapons for Tom Brady including Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, and Chris Hogan. He also got career years out of Wes Welker and Brandon LaFell. Given the Bears’ issues at wide receiver, this hire would make plenty of sense.
DC: Mike Pettine
It’s curious why Pettine hasn’t coached since 2015. Sure his run with the Cleveland Browns as head coach was a disaster, but that’s true of most men these days. As an assistant, particularly a defensive coordinator Pettine is actually quite good. In his five years on the job between the Jets and Bills from 2009 to 2013, his unit never ranked lower than 10th in total defense. McDaniels went against him a number of times so there is plenty of familiarity.
Matt Lafleur
OC: Greg Olson
This will be an easy decision for Lafleur. He’s currently working with Olson in Los Angeles who is the Rams quarterbacks coach. Olson is among the most experienced offensive coordinators in the NFL. He’s actually held that job for five different teams across an 11-year span. During that time he had some success, most notably with the quarterbacks. Marc Bulger went to a Pro Bowl in 2006. Josh Freeman threw 25 TDs in 2010 and 35 TDs from Blake Bortles in 2015. He even had a hand in the early development of Derek Carr with the Raiders.
DC: Raheem Morris
Lafleur and Morris go way back. They both were on the Washington Redskins coaching staff from 2012 to 2013 and reunited from 2015 to 2016 with the Atlanta Falcons. Morris was a former head coach in Tampa Bay and brings a history of success as an assistant dating back years. He’s known for his high energy and ability to communicate with players. Every defense he has coached for excelled with him on the staff.
Matt Patricia
OC: Gary Kubiak
Patricia knows Kubiak well. The two went head-to-head several times in high stakes games when the latter was head coach at Houston, offensive coordinator in Baltimore and head coach again in Denver. Each time Kubiak found a way to test and fluster Patricia. In fact his defense allowed 28 or more points five times when going against Kubiak. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist (which Patricia is) to know that kind of coach is a must-have.
DC: Josh Boyer
Few position groups have been overturned more during the Bill Belichick era in New England than the cornerbacks. Yet it seems like every year they have news faces who are becoming stars. Josh Boyer became defensive backs coach for the team in 2009 and was moved to cornerbacks in 2012. Every year it seemed like he was getting great seasons from improbable names: Brandon Meriweather, Kyle Arrington, Logan Ryan, Malcolm Butler, and Duron Harmon. He’s young and ascending.
Dave Toub
OC: Brad Childress
Bears fans will remember Childress as head coach of the Vikings from 2006 to 2010. During that time he had considerable success. Before that he was offensive coordinator in Philadelphia and after he took up an assistant position in Kansas City. With his help Alex Smith has gone on to the best stretch of his career, Childress helping to alter the scheme to fit what he does best. One thing is clear. Whenever he had a decent quarterback as a coordinator, his offenses ranked 13th or higher in points scored.
DC: John Pagano
Toub should be familiar with the work of Pagano, having seen him up close for five seasons when he was defensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers. Despite some talent deficiencies at times, Pagano had success. They finished top 10 in total defense in 2012 and 2014 and fourth in takeaways in 2016. His 3-4 leanings make him an obvious to maintain scheme continuity should Fangio leave.
Frank Reich
OC: John DeFilippo
There is no doubt that Reich may seek to bring DeFilippo with him from Philadelphia. His work as a quarterbacks coach is fairly extensive. He helped Mark Sanchez to an AFC championship as a rookie in 2009. He coached up Derek Carr as a rookie in 2014 and has since done a phenomenal job with Carson Wentz over the past two years. Some rumblings say he may even get head coaching looks next year. Odds are though that will wait until he gets coordinating experience.
DC: Ray Horton
It’s amazing the raw deal that Ray Horton has gotten over the past few years. The guy was asked to work miracles in places like Arizona, Cleveland and Tennessee and never given enough time to see it through. His first runs as a coordinator with Arizona, his unit ranked 18th the first year and 12th the next. The first lone season he had with the Browns in 2013 they ranked ninth. He took the Titans from 29th to 12th his two years in Tennessee after that. The man has never been given a fair shake to fully implement his defense. He and Reich worked together in Arizona, so there’s a connection.
Teryl Austin
OC: James Urban
Urban and Austin have a competitive history together. For three seasons they went head-to-head, Urban’s wide receivers in Cincinnati against Austin’s secondary in Baltimore. It was a battle each and every time. Urban was a favorite among Bengals players to become offensive coordinator this past year but was overlooked in favor of Bill Lazor. Many in the league feel he’s overdue for a shot at the job. Austin knows his work well. This would be an intriguing marriage.
DC: Chuck Pagano
The fate of Pagano remains unclear but there is a growing belief the Indianapolis Colts head coach will be replaced at the end of this season by new GM Chris Ballard. If so Austin, who worked with him in Baltimore could pounce. Pagano is a 3-4 defensive specialist who was outstanding in his lone year as a coordinator in 2011 for the Ravens. His units in Indianapolis have also been solid despite a clear lack of front line talent. He’s a motivator with a great attention to detail.
