Chicago Bears: The John Fox Replacement Power Rankings
By Erik Lambert
The Chicago Bears are all but certain to make a change at head coach by January of 2018 after three difficult seasons under John Fox.
Such is the sad reality of the NFL. Don’t win for long enough and a man finds himself unemployed. It is one of the most mentally demanding jobs in all of professional sports. That’s why only a handful of men in the world can do it. Chicago is praying they find somebody this coming off-season. Otherwise what has already been a nightmarish four-year stretch of losing will extend even further. This puts a ton of pressure on GM Ryan Pace to get it right.
As things stand with five games left to go, here’s an updated power rankings of the who can be considered the best options on the market to this point. Of course things could change in the near future.
Why is McDaniels #1? He has Tom Brady so that’s an unfair advantage. Except that’s a poor excuse. The reality is McDaniels remains one of the sharpest offensive minds in the NFL. His play calling prowess is among the very best and his two Super Bowl rings are proof he’s mastered the coordinator job. He’s shown he can get production out of other quarterbacks like Matt Cassel, Kyle Orton and Jimmy Garoppolo. His time in Denver as head coach was a flop, but he was also very young at the time. There’s a strong chance he’s matured and learned a lot since then.. OC. New England. Josh McDaniels . 1. player. 47
If anything Patricia should be #1 on the list. Why? He doesn’t have a Tom Brady to lean on like his partner McDaniels does. If anything that makes what Patricia has accomplished defensively since 2012 all the more impressive. He’s never had a scoring defense lower than 12th and his ability to turn the unit around from being the worst in the league this year to one of the best? It’s another sign that he understands what the problem is and knows how to make adjustments. That is head coaching 101. His engineering background and attention to detail also give him a leg up.. DC. New England. Matt Patricia . 2. player. 47
3. player. 54. It pays to be the guiding light for the hottest quarterback in football. Frank Reich is overseeing the ascent of Carson Wentz to super stardom and reaping the rewards. This after Reich had a reasonable successful run as offensive coordinator in San Diego with Philip Rivers. He is quarterback expertise personified with decades of playing and coaching experience at the position. He’s also known for his prowess as a motivational speaker. If he weren’t 55-years old already he likely might be the hottest name available.. OC. Philadelphia. Frank Reich