The Chicago Bears under Matt Nagy always seem to love tinkering with the coaching staff each year. One thing about their head coach is he’s not above making changes and finding roles for new guys. He doesn’t fear the staff being big. It just means he has more brains he can pick to make the team better. He also loves to get as many diverse opinions from the staff as possible. That is why he plucks from both the NFL and college range.
His latest addition might be one of the most surprising yet. The Bears Twitter announced that the team had reached an agreement to make former Texas Longhorns head coach Tom Herman their new offensive analyst/special projects coach. A unique title to be sure. He finished 32-18 during his time there, winning all four of his bowl games and finishing 2018 ranked 9th in the nation.
One would think he would’ve had plenty of job offers in the college ranks.
We have hired former Texas head coach Tom Herman as an offensive analyst/special projects coach and Anthony Hibbert as assistant strength coach. https://t.co/qzmh9DN0Zl
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) March 1, 2021
So why the sudden urge to jump to the NFL? Much less for a job title that doesn’t exactly command a lot of prestige. It’s possible he felt it was time for a change. Herman has been strictly a college coach for the past 22 years. It’s all he has known. Maybe at 45-years old, he felt it was the right time for a fresh start. To see if he can make it on the pro level.
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Chicago may see an opportunity of their own. Herman is yet another young, intelligent coach with deep background expertise on quarterbacks. He also spent 10 season as an offensive coordinator for several different schools. This included Ohio State in 2014 when they won the National Championship, defeating Oregon.
Is it possible the Bears see him as potential insurance in case they wish to make a change at offensive coordinator? It’s certainly a subplot to watch moving forward.
Tom Herman has done some impressive work at the QB position
This goes back several years. He’s routinely gotten standout passing seasons from his quarterbacks. At Rice in 2008, Chase Clements threw for over 4,000 yards with 44 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. In 2013, he got Braxton Miller and Kenny Guiton to combine for 38 touchdowns and nine interceptions. His best work though was probably the next year.
J.T. Barrett threw 34 touchdowns to 10 interceptions that season but was hurt late in the year. This forced Cardale Jones into the lineup. He fired five touchdowns and just two interceptions over the final three games including wins over Alabama and Oregon to win the national championship. An impressive coaching effort that made him a head coach for the first time a year later.
This guy knows passing offense.
The work he’s done with Sam Ehlinger down at Texas is deserving of praise. People have compared the QB to Tim Tebow with a slightly better arm. Yet Herman got him to throw 61 touchdowns to 15 interceptions in their past two seasons together. It shouldn’t be a surprise the Chicago Bears were interested in this guy. If they’re smart, they’ll find a way to make him their offensive coordinator at some point in the future.