If there is one fundamental truth about the NFL, it’s that every team that doesn’t have success is jealous of the ones that do. That is why you’d better be prepared for those teams to come knocking down your door, ready to lure away the people who help make that success possible, be they players or coaches. The Chicago Bears haven’t had a winning season since 2018. Now under head coach Ben Johnson, they’re 11-4, in the playoffs, and perhaps one win away from clinching the NFC North title.
Needless to say, that sudden turnaround has gotten the attention of teams around the NFL. They’re wondering how it happened so fast. Obviously, much of the credit belongs to Johnson. Then again, he has been the first person to credit his staff for doing a stellar job of preparing players for the tough games they’ve played. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the buzz is building that there could be a full-on sprint to swipe several assistants for higher positions elsewhere.
The team can already see it coming.
The Bears are braced for a potential raiding of the Chicago staff this winter…
…Press Taylor has been revitalized in Chicago as the pass game coordinator in his first major offensive role without Doug Pederson as the head coach. J.T. Barrett, the former Ohio State quarterback, has been working his way up the coaching ladder the past few years, and the Bears quarterbacks coach will likely get OC interviews this cycle.
Last but not least on offense is running backs coach Eric Bieniemy. The two-time Super Bowl-winning offensive coordinator saw a brief career decline when he left Kansas City…
…Defensively, people need to understand just how great of a coach Al Harris has been. The former All-Pro and Pro Bowler has been coaching up takeaways as well as any assistant coach in the league the last few years.
The Chicago Bears have felt this sting before.
After their 1985 Super Bowl run, defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan left to become head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. After their 2006 run, they lost assistant offensive line coach Harold Goodwin to Pittsburgh and couldn’t reach an agreement to keep Ron Rivera as defensive coordinator. Adam Gase left after one season to become the offensive coordinator in Miami, and, of course, Vic Fangio left for Denver after his brilliant 2018 season, taking much of his defensive staff with him. In each of those situations, the Bears got worse.
This situation might be a little different. Johnson isn’t going anywhere. He is the unquestioned architect of the Chicago Bears’ top 10 offense. The same is true for defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, who has already been a head coach twice. No team is likely to give him a third shot. That means the primary challenge will be if the Bears can find credible replacements for guys like Harris and Bieniemy. That is no easy task since both are considered among the best at their respective jobs.
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Such is the life of a successful organization in the NFL.
