The Chicago Bears did something rather unexpected this spring. While they always utilize the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship to evaluate young minority coaches, it’s often guys with zero credibility to their name. They’re trying to break into the business. That changed this year as the Bears added two big-time names. One is former Pro Bowl running back Eddie George. He’s spent his post-playing career breaking in as head coach for Tennessee State. The other is Randy Shannon, a coaching legend in the college ranks.
While George may have the bigger star power, Shannon is easily the most intriguing potential staff addition. He won a national championship as a linebacker for Miami in 1987. Then after a short NFL stint, he returned to the program as an assistant coach. He would then help them win two more national titles, with 2001 being more prominent since he was their defensive coordinator. Shannon produced several great defenses in the past two decades as a coordinator and head coach.
It seems the 57-year-old is already making his presence felt at Bears OTAs. The team provided a video of his work on YouTube. His knowledge and experience come through immediately.
The Chicago Bears should find a way to keep Shannon.
It isn’t clear what his intentions are with this fellowship. He is currently the co-defensive coordinator at Florida State, which is a pretty respectable position. Would he trade that for a chance to join the Bears’ staff? If so, Matt Eberflus needs to make that happen. Shannon is a wealth of experience when it comes to developing young players. Several of his kids went on to have outstanding NFL careers, like Calais Campbell, Olivier Vernon, Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, Ed Reed, Jonathan Vilma, and Richie Grant, among others.
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If Shannon does have an interest in finally joining the NFL ranks, the Chicago Bears should make that happen. Their defensive staff has a lot of youth in it. They could use a more veteran presence like him in the mix. He’d also provide them some insurance in case defensive coordinator Alan Williams doesn’t get his unit playing better this season. All that aside, it was a wise decision by the organization to get him involved in OTAs. Even if it’s only for a short time, he can have a positive impact on the players.
Having him come in as a consultant role is a good place to start. He has a wealth of information for the players to learn and tips for coaches.
Start small
You can bet Eb uses Williams as the scapegoat this year to save himself.