Chicago Bears: Coaching Slots Left Open and Who Can Fill Them
By Erik Lambert
Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy has begun to fill out his staff. A few slots have been filled to this point but several remain open.
Before digging into the results so far it’s important note that the defensive staff will not be discussed. At least not yet. Word persists that the team is intent on retaining Vic Fangio. If they succeed then in all likelihood they will keep the current staff they have. Until such time as it becomes clear Fangio is not returning then that area of the staff will become a topic of discussion.
As things stand this article will primarily focus on the two areas Nagy has directed his attention to this point. That being the offense and special teams. Thus far the Bears have added four new names to the coaching staff in the past two days. Here’s a quick peek at how things are shaping up thus far and also which positions remain in limbo.
- Head Coach: Matt Nagy
- Offensive Coordinator: Mark Helfrich
- Quarterbacks Coach: ?
- Running Backs Coach: Charles London
- Wide Receivers Coach: ?
- Offensive Line Coach: Harry Hiestand
- Tight Ends Coach: ?
- Special Teams Coordinator: Charles Tabor
The most recent of those hires is Helfrich. Formerly the head coach at Oregon he was primarily responsible for the rise of Marcus Mariota and that dominant spread offense. London was running backs coach in Houston and has done a fair job getting quality production out of Lamar Miller, Alfred Blue and Arian Foster among others. Tabor somehow survived multiple coaching purges in Cleveland for the past seven years. Quietly over that span he got solid play from his units despite some highly questionable talent.
QB and WR slots are the ones to watch in coming days
The rock star of that group is undoubtedly Hiestand. He ran the best Bears offensive lines in recent memory from 2005 to 2009. Then he established a factory for future 1st round picks during his latest run at Notre Dame. All in all this is a group that mixes forward-thinking and old school excellence to the proper degrees. That said the work is not yet finished. Fangio issues aside they have two slots on the offensive staff that remain uncertain in the quarterbacks coach and wide receivers coach.
It’s possible Nagy may choose to retain current QBs coach Dave Ragone who seems to have a strong relationship with Mitch Trubisky. On the other hand certain names like Todd Downing and Brian Schottenheimer are still available, both of whom bring far more lengthy credentials to the job. The more interesting slot though may be the receivers given how poorly the group performed in 2017. One name they might want to explore? Jeff Scott from the University of Clemson.
Next: Chicago Bears 2018 Mock Draft: Waging Trench Warfare
His work has been criminally underrated the past few years. Since 2008 he’s been the receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator for the Tigers. In that time the program has produced six players who were eventually drafted. This includes DeAndre Hopkins, Sammy Watkins, Martavis Bryant, Jacoby Ford and Mike Williams. If Nagy is intent on plucking from the college ranks this is absolutely the guy to go after.