The Chicago Bears appear to be leaving no stone left unturned in their efforts to find their next defensive coordinator. That includes reaching deep in their past for some possible old school magic. According to Adam Jahns of The Athletic, the team quietly interviewed former 10-time Pro Bowl linebacker and Hall of Famer Mike Singletary for the position. A truly unexpected swerve in their ongoing search.
Singletary hasn’t coached in the NFL since 2016 when he was an assistant with the Los Angeles Rams. Since then he had a stint with the Memphis Express in the now-defunct Alliance of American Football as their head coach. They went 2-6 in their only season. He has never been a defensive coordinator in his coaching career. So this is a fairly odd move by the Bears.
Perhaps they may feel he can bring a different mentality to this unit.
One thing is for sure. The man’s track record as a coach, in general, has never really been that great. In his two seasons as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, the team went 13-18. An interesting side note of that is the defense did finish 4th in points allowed his first year before falling to 16th the next. They were also 6th in rushing yards allowed both seasons.
So there is at least some evidence that he can coach up a defense. After leaving San Francisco, he became the linebackers coach in Minnesota for three seasons. With his help, Chad Greenway made the Pro Bowl twice. Earlier in his career, he also oversaw the development of Terrell Suggs in Baltimore. Make no mistake, Singletary would be a gamble but at least one who brings some pedigree to the job.
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Hearing that the #Bears interviewed team legend Mike Singletary for their defensive coordinator opening earlier this week.
My @TheAthleticNFL story on Singletary here (along with more on the DC search from @kfishbain):https://t.co/4kGHkZtXya
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) January 20, 2021
Chicago Bears do have success going to their past
Back in 2004, they hired Ron Rivera as their defensive coordinator. He was a former linebacker for them back in the 1980s. Now he’s one of the most respected head coaches in the NFL. Rivera coordinated the Bears defense to the #1 ranking in 2005 and the Super Bowl in 2006. So reaching into the past has served the organization well before. Is it so crazy to think Singletary might be able to do some good for that defense?
It’s generally felt that Chuck Pagano was a little too lenient on the players this past season. They weren’t always giving their best and they made far more mistakes than normal. Singletary made his name as a player thanks to his intelligence and leadership. One thing that proved true during his coaching stints is he’ll hold players accountable. He’ll have high demands and expectations of them. This isn’t a bad thing.
The key will be whether he can match wits with the top offensive minds today.
Can he play the chess match? Pagano too often seemed outclassed in those situations. Perhaps the Chicago Bears want to see if Singletary can sell them on being the guy who can get this unit back to where it should be atop the NFL. If nothing else, it’s an interesting move.