As of now, insiders have confirmed six names for the upcoming Chicago Bears coaching search. More are likely to surface after the season finale in Green Bay, but a pattern is already developing. Four of the six names mentioned are defensive specialists: Mike Vrabel, Brian Flores, Aaron Glenn, and Anthony Weaver. Such an approach has fans baffled. For a team that needs to prioritize the development of Caleb Williams, they seem oddly obsessed with the idea of hiring yet another defensive coach. What is the plan for such a move? Well, it might be simpler than you think, and it involves Thomas Brown.
Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports provided new information on the Bears’ situation. He mentioned something that stood out. From what he gathers, the organization might be angling to keep Brown on the staff as the offensive coordinator, hoping to maintain some offensive stability for Williams.
It is possible the next head coach decides to move interim head coach Thomas Brown back to offensive coordinator, where Williams had some brief success before Brown was named the interim head coach and had his focus taken away from the quarterback’s development as his main priority.
This would go a long way toward explaining their interest in defensive coaches. They would be far more open to the idea of retaining Brown than offensive coaches, who almost certainly would prefer to install their own systems. If this is true, it at least provides some clarity on what the plan could be.
Retaining Thomas Brown feels like unnecessary self-sabotage.
Yes, in the three games he took over as offensive coordinator, the unit improved. They scored 19, 27, and 20 points, respectively. Williams played well in those three games. This seems to have been enough of a sign to team brass that Brown is worth retaining. Had he not been promoted to head coach, it’s likely that success would’ve continued. At least, that is the faulty logic the Bears are operating with. Continuity sounds great in practice, but the reality is that same thinking is what led to their current mess on the offensive line. It is what led to them retaining Eberflus despite obvious signs he probably should’ve been fired.
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Thomas Brown did some good things when asked to take over the offense, but that doesn’t make him the best man for the job. The Bears need true stability. Even if their gamble worked and he excelled at the job under a new head coach, teams would quickly line up to hire him elsewhere, and the original problem would still remain. If Williams is their priority, they need to stop tiptoeing around the issue and do the obvious. Hire the best offensive coach you can find and let him handle the job. No more blending of previous staffs with new ones.
I’m hoping the Bears don’t make the same mistakes as they have before and this time let their GM select the next head coach and let the coach choose his staff.
Sign up TB as permanent HC! He’s undefeated against the Packers!!!
Y’all see that first drive? Yeah I don’t want Brown as OC. Nowhere close to being OC. Not even if we hire an Offensive HC.
As @David pointed out, all of this is speculation. If I were in Poles chair (glad I’m not, he knows more about football than I do), I would hire a HC, and then instruct him that he should give an interview to Brown for the OC position. The new HC is free to hire whomever he wants to, and if he doesn’t hire Brown, that’s fine, but he should consider the continuity Brown would offer. Frankly, in the unlikely event that Johnson is the next head coach, and he retains Brown as OC, I’d feel a lot better about Brown… Read more »
This must be a joke, a sick, cruel joke.