It doesn’t look like Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy is in any immediate danger of being fired before the season ends. He’s fortunate the McCaskey family runs this team and have never done that in their history. Otherwise, he might already be gone. However, it’s merely a stay of execution. Expectations are he’ll get the boot after the season ends January 4th against Green Bay. Until then, nothing should stop the team from at least surveying their options.
Rumors are running rampant already on which direction they might go. Here’s the latest buzz. According to a source, George McCaskey and his inner circle have been doing a lot of research on potential options. What stands out about the early list is that most of the names mentioned come from the college ranks.
The one who has come up the most is Pat Fitzgerald.
CBS insider Jason La Canfora mentioned the Northwestern head coach is at the top of the Bears’ wishlist. It’s unclear if that is true but they are interested in him. However, he isn’t the only one. A number of other noteworthy college names were mentioned as well including Jim Harbaugh (Michigan), Luke Fickell (Cincinnati), Matt Campbell (Iowa State), and Tom Allen (Indiana).
Harbaugh of course coached in the NFL before with San Francisco and had success. He also was a quarterback for the Bears in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Fickell is a bit of a rising star with back-to-back 11-win seasons in 2018 and 2019 and now boasting an 8-0 record in 2020. Campbell is a proven program-builder who won a lot at Toledo and is now doing the same for ISU. Allen? His work for the Hoosiers is about to produce back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1990-91.
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Bears head coach search likely to expand in coming weeks
One of the reasons the Bears might be focusing in that direction right now is unusual circumstances. Reports have indicated that COVID-19 could have a profound on the revenue situation of the NCAA. To such a degree that several college coaches may deem it better for their careers to make the jump to the NFL. Far more than normal. Including guys who almost certainly would stay put otherwise.
Now this is not to say that is the direction McCaskey will go in. Remember the Bears head coach job still belongs to Nagy and will until after the regular season finale on January 4th. That is a month away. Odds are pretty good the team will expand their list of candidates to research between now and then. That will also be when teams can begin meeting coaches in person. Something mandated by the NFL due to the pandemic protocols.
If the Bears do ultimately pluck from that pool?
It would be an unprecedented move. This franchise has never hired a coach directly out of college in their century-long history. They’ve done it from the CFL (Marc Trestman) and even a former rival pro league (Jack Pardee) but never college. There is no denying the risks involved. College coaches tend to have trouble transitioning to the NFL. Motivating young men just out of their teens is not the same as grown adults.
The list of success stories is far, far shorter than the list of failures. So McCaskey is right to do as much research as possible while he can.
