The Chicago Bears' general manager Ryan Poles and coach Matt Eberflus are working on improving their coaching staff.
After fired five coaches earlier this month, including offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, the Bears started the offseason looking for new offensive and defensive coordinators and position coaches for the quarterbacks, wide receivers, and running backs.
On Tuesday, the Bears officially confirmed that they have hired former Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Shane Waldron as their new offensive coordinator. A deal was reported to be in the works on Monday.
Eberflus said in a statement that, “This was a very thorough search, but in the end I’m grateful the journey led us to Shane. He is a great teacher and communicator with a diverse coaching background among some of the game’s most elite head coaches. I look forward to partnering with him as we build out the rest of the staff and get him started here.”
Waldron said in a statement: “I appreciate this opportunity given to me by Coach Eberflus and Ryan Poles. We can’t wait to get to work at a franchise with such a storied history and passionate fan base.”
Here’s how the process of hiring the offensive coordinator unfolded.
Jan. 18
The Bears are likely to interview former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, as reported by ESPN.
The rundown: Kingsbury, 44, spent this past season as a senior offensive analyst and quarterbacks coach at USC, where potential No. 1 draft pick Caleb Williams played. The Bears are delving deeper into their evaluations of Williams as they decide whether to draft a quarterback with the top pick this spring. Williams threw for 3,633 yards with 30 touchdowns and five interceptions in 12 games in 2023.
In four seasons as the Cardinals coach, Kingsbury was 28-37-1. The Cardinals fired him last January after a 4-13 season following the team's previous playoff appearance with quarterback Kyler Murray. Before that, Kingsbury was the head coach for six seasons at Texas Tech, where he coached quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
He also served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Texas A&M and Houston. Kingsbury played quarterback at Texas Tech and in the NFL, NFL Europe, and CFL.
The Bears are interviewing Los Angeles Rams passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Zac Robinson, as reported by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.
The rundown: Robinson, 37, has been part of Sean McVay’s coaching staff in Los Angeles for the last five seasons and has held his current role for the last two years. In 2021, Robinson also served as Matthew Stafford’s quarterbacks coach as Stafford equaled a career high with 41 touchdown passes and led the Rams to a Super Bowl title.
This season Robinson contributed to a passing offense that ranked in the top 10 in yards and yards per play.
Robinson was a standout quarterback at Oklahoma State and was selected in the seventh round by the New England Patriots in 2010. He spent four seasons in the NFL with the Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions, and Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bears have requested an interview with Philadelphia Eagles senior offensive assistant Marcus Brady, ESPN stated.
The summary: Brady, 44, worked for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023 after spending five seasons with the Indianapolis Colts under coach Nick Sirianni.
During his time with the Colts, Brady advanced from assistant quarterbacks coach in 2018 to offensive coordinator in 2021-22. The Colts had a strong running game in 2021 but struggled with total yards in 2022, ranking 27th in the league with 311.6 yards per game.
Brady also coached in the Canadian Football League for nine seasons.
Jan. 17
The Bears are talking to Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator Thomas Brown, The Athletic reported.
The summary: Brown, 37, spent three seasons with the Rams before joining the Panthers as offensive coordinator in 2023. He faced challenges with the Panthers' rookie quarterback Bryce Young, who averaged a league-worst 265.3 yards per game. Brown previously coached running backs and tight ends with the Rams and also held the title of assistant head coach.
Before his NFL experience, Brown was a college running backs coach for eight seasons and had also worked as an offensive coordinator at Miami. He is also scheduled to interview with the Tennessee Titans for their head coaching position.
The Bears interviewed former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman,
Jan. 15
NFL Network’s Peter Schrager reported. The summary:
Roman, 51, served as offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers, Buffalo Bills and Ravens. Notably, he built the Ravens offense around quarterback Lamar Jackson, leading to Jackson's MVP season in 2019. However, Roman and the Ravens parted ways after the offense declined following the 2022 season, during which the team's points per game dropped from 33.2 in 2019 to 20.6 in 2022. The Bears interviewed Seahawks quarterbacks coach Greg Olson,
the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Jan. 12
Most recently, Olson served as the Seahawks quarterbacks coach in 2023 and as a senior offensive assistant with the Los Angeles Rams in 2022. He also spent the 2003 season as the Bears quarterbacks coach. The Bears planned to interview Kentucky offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Liam Coen,
CBS Sports reported.
Besides that, Coen has been a coach for college quarterbacks and offensive coordinator since 2010 at Brown, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine and most recently Kentucky in 2021 and 2023. The Bears intended to talk with 49ers passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak,
ESPN reported.
Jan. 11
Kubiak, the son of longtime NFL coach Gary Kubiak, also worked for the Minnesota Vikings as offensive coordinator in 2021 and quarterbacks coach from 2019-20, working with Kirk Cousins. The Bears asked for an interview with Seahawks offensive coordinator Shane Waldron,
NFL Network reported.
Jan. 10
He also worked as an offensive assistant with the Patriots (2008-09) and Washington (2016) and worked in operations with the Patriots early in his career. He has coached in college, high school and the UFL. More Bears news
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- Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles and coach Matt Eberflus are working on revamping their coaching staff. The Bears are expected to interview former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, ESPN reported.. The summary: Kingsbury, 44, spent this past season as a senior offensive analyst and quarterbacks coach at USC, where potential No. 1 draft pick…
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