/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73851825/2192683901.0.jpg)
Chicago Bears fans have been hungry for anything they can sink their teeth into, so I’ve been trying to find out what I can about the Bears’ search and other teams. Let’s dive into what I’ve heard. (Feel free to call me a fraud in the comments, too. It always warms the heart.)
Ben Johnson. Let’s not bury the lede. I don’t think things look good for Johnson to come to Chicago. When the Patriots were headed down the path to Mike Vrabel and the Jacksonville Jaguars decided to keep Trent Baalke, my process of elimination was that Johnson would end up in Chicago.
I didn’t consider the Las Vegas Raiders. When Johnson met with the Raiders, Tom Brady sold him hard on the Raiders. I think he put Mark Davis concerns to rest and I also think the Raiders specifically fired Tom Telesco to create the blank slate that Ben Johnson was looking for. We heard Albert Breer's report almost two months ago that Ben Johnson was looking for “GM alignment” which many assumed meant that Ryan Poles needed to be extended. I think Johnson was looking for a GM to come in at the same time as him and they could begin building a franchise in their vision.
I am not saying that the Bears’ decision to retain Ryan Poles ended their chances on Johnson, but I don’t think it helped and it certainly might have hurt.
I think most of the Ben Johnson info is coming from people outside his camp, so I won’t shut the door on this completely, is there a chance Johnson is using the Raiders for leverage and has played the media like a fiddle and is just pushing his price up? It’s possible, but the way I’m looking at this, I do not think Johnson is coming to Chicago.
Mike McCarthy. As I tweeted the moment it was announced that McCarthy was going to be interviewing with the Bears, I said he was a finalist and there is plenty of momentum building towards a possible union of McCarthy and the Bears.
McCarthy checks a lot of boxes the Bears are looking for. He’s an offensive-minded guy for Caleb Williams, he’s an experienced coach, and is he a leader of men? I think that can be questioned but he does have a history of winning which I don’t think the Bears will ignore.
The Saints are also quite interested in McCarthy as well, so it’s always possible that the Saints scoop in and land McCarthy as well. The two names that are rumored to be high on the Saints list are McCarthy and Aaron Glenn.
Also one other note about McCarthy, I think he would sign with the Bears and have no issue if the Bears don’t extend Ryan Poles.
Brian Flores. I think there’s a lot of interest here from Chicago. Flores has experience as a head coach and is the leader of men type. My opinion just keeps clouding this because I cannot see how Kevin Warren and Ryan Poles can look at Flores and think that he’s a good idea to help develop Caleb Williams.
If Johnson goes to the Raiders and McCarthy goes to the Saints, I think Flores is going to be on the short list of coaches they will consider hiring. As of right now, I think he’s first or second on the list, but they have more interviews and someone could jump him.
I think the Jets will also be pushing for Flores. I think the Jets will also consider Matt Nagy. But the big name to watch there is Aaron Glenn. As for Flores, I think there’s a chance that Flores is the runner-up in a lot of places and returns to Minnesota next season.
Todd Monken. Let’s discuss Monken next because of coaches that haven’t been interviewed and could blow the Bears away, I think Monken is the guy that fits this bill. I’m a big fan of Monken. I think he’s a great offensive mind, I think he’s a no-nonsense guy, but at the same time, he’s a high-energy guy that I think the players will appreciate.
I have a hunch that Monken is going to do really well in the interview process and that, combined with the idea that I believe of the Bears' extensive list, Monken is on their short list of legitimate candidates that they are highly interested in.
Pete Carroll. Anyone I talk to thinks that Pete Carroll is going to end up coaching somewhere this year. When I ask where, the names that come back are the Bears and the Raiders. If Johnson doesn’t go to the Raiders, I do think Carroll will end up there. If Johnson ends up in Las Vegas, would Carroll end up in Chicago? I’m not certain but a lot of people that are far more plugged in than me certainly do.
I don’t hate the idea of Carroll. If he was 10 years younger, he would absolutely be the 2nd guy on my list, but he will be 74 and I think the Bears won’t get past that because I think they want to hire someone they can expect to be here 10 years assuming everything goes well.
Marcus Freeman. I am going to keep Freeman on this list because I’m confident that Kevin Warren is very interested in Freeman. To me, Freeman is not a guy that ends up as a finalist and interviews and the Bears may or may not hire him. To me, Freeman is a guy where you contact his camp and ask him if he wants the job, if he does, you hire him and if he doesn’t, it quietly ends there.
I don’t think Freeman is ready to leave South Bend and I think if that does happen (it may already have happened), my guess is that Freeman declines. Perhaps if Freeman wins the national championship on Monday he may decide he wants to jump to the NFL, but I think this is a shot in the dark from Warren and it doesn’t go anywhere beyond a hope and a prayer.
The Field. I have not heard much legitimate interest from the Bears from anyone else. I know a lot of Bears fans like the idea of Joe Brady. The Bears might as well, but I haven’t heard there’s heavy interest there. There is the dreaded tie that Brady has Trace Armstrong as his agent, so who knows? We know Armstrong has George McCaskey’s ear. One other note from Armstrong. I’ve seen articles that list Armstrong as Mike McCarthy’s agent. That is not true. McCarthy changed agents and is now with Don Yee.
The league. So beyond the Bears, I believe the Raiders are full go for Johnson, if they miss, I think their next guy is Carroll. I think the Saints want either Glenn or McCarthy. I think the Jets want either Glenn or Flores (or possibly Nagy). The Cowboys I think are either going to throw a giant bag at Deion Sanders or move on Kellen Moore. That leaves the Jaguars.
Talking to people, everyone keeps bringing up the decision to retain Trent Baalke as a massive mistake. I’ve heard plenty of guesses here from Liam Coen to Joe Brady to Robert Saleh. I don’t know where Jacksonville goes and I’m guessing most of the people reading this article don’t care either.
Obviously, everything I’ve written is subject to be wrong, but trying to read through the noise this is the best I can make of the current coaching carousel.
Loading comments...