Chicago Bears 2018 Mock Off-Season: Time to Get Aggressive
By Erik Lambert
Another week goes by with another boring slog through the mud by the Chicago Bears. A game they should’ve won that they lost.
What else is new? It was yet another death blow to John Fox’s career as an NFL head coach. Whatever magic he used to have in Carolina and Denver, he doesn’t have it anymore. The 62-year old and the rest of his staff are almost certain to be unemployed come the start of January next year. A moment that Bears fans wish would come as an early Christmas present.
There’s no doubt the changes are coming and they could be extensive. Will Ryan Pace be the one to make them? That’s still unclear. Nonetheless here’s a way it could end up playing out.
Coaching Changes
Head coach: John DeFilippo
He’s fast becoming one of the hottest names on the coaching market. DeFilippo is the quarterbacks coach for the Philadelphia Eagles, who currently sport MVP hopeful Carson Wentz. DeFilippo is young, energetic and by all accounts an excellent teacher. His reputation with quarterbacks is rock solid as he’s gotten players like Wentz, Derek Carr and Mark Sanchez off to good starts in their respective careers. If the Bears are looking for a guy to mold Mitch Trubisky, this could be him.
Offensive coordinator: Greg Olson
Olson is a coordinating veteran. He’s held the job five different times for four different teams. He also has a background with quarterbacks. He coached for the Bears back in 2003. His success as a coordinator is mixed but often that’s because he inherited very average rosters. The one time he had a solid talent to work with was 2006 in St. Louis. They finished 6th in the NFL. He also got great seasons out of Josh Freeman, a rookie Derek Carr and even Blake Bortles in 2015.
Quarterbacks coach: Greg Knapp
DeFilippo worked with Knapp on two separate occasions in Oakland. The two have plenty of familiarity. Knapp is an experienced offensive coach who’s been around the NFL since 1997. He has coordinating experience but has often done his best work as a quarterbacks coach. Jeff Garcia, Matt Schaub, and Peyton Manning all had career years when he was on their head sets. The best part is he’s currently available after Denver let him go this past off-season.
Defensive coordinator: Mike Pettine
Another coaching free agent with ties to DeFilippo. After how disastrously things ended in 2015 for the Cleveland Browns, Mike Pettine became somewhat radioactive. He hasn’t held a coaching job since. However, as the Browns continue to flounder it’s becoming clear the problems may lay elsewhere. Besides, he may not be a head coach but the man was a rock solid defensive coordinator. From 2009 to 2013 between the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills, his defenses never ranked lower than 10th. He’s also a 3-4 specialist.