The Chicago Bears head coaching vacancy was ranked third by ESPN’s Bill Barnwell in a column
Barnwell ranked the Chicago Bears third out of the nine potential head coaching openings this offseason. The only two organizations he put in front of the Chicago Bears were the Jacksonville Jaguars at number one and the Miami Dolphins at number two. It is unknown whether Miami is seriously considering a change from current head coach Mike McDaniel, but the odds of Jacksonville having a vacancy are relatively high.
What is almost guaranteed is that the Chicago Bears are the top option for candidates at the moment based on the three vacancies across the league. Obviously, things will change and the competition will stiffen when other openings are created, but the Chicago Bears have a leg up on the competition based on where things stand now.
The Chicago Bears’ opening has plenty of appeal
Barnwell cited three positives when looking at the Chicago Bears head coaching vacancy. These would be the quarterback position, cap space, and patient ownership.
Having Caleb Williams is without a doubt the number one thing that all head coaching candidates will look at with the Chicago Bears opening. The rookie signal-caller is the only rookie quarterback in franchise history to eclipse 3,000 passing yards in a season, and he has done so with a coaching staff shuffle during the campaign. He is an easy positive to see with this organization for any candidate that interviews for the role.
Cap space is something with the Chicago Bears this offseason that not enough people have addressed. The front office has the ability to make some moves to add to very key positions to have Williams and the offense well-equipped entering next year.
The last pro that Barnell lists is one that not many have addressed over the last month. Describing the Chicago Bears’ ownership as “patient” is certainly a change of pace compared to what fans are used to. More and more outlets have shared that they believe the higher-ups will approach this hire differently than they have before is encouraging. However, it will be an “I’ll believe it when I see it” moment for the city of Chicago when going through this process.
One positive that Barnweel did not address is the Chicago Bears draft capital this April. The team should have three picks in the top 40 if all goes according to plan, and that’s something they can use to upgrade the trenches big time. The offensive line needs a complete rehaul, and bringing in more pass rushing is a desperate need, as the Chicago Bears have struggled to get to the quarterback this season.
For the first time over the last month, some negatives were brought up about the Chicago Bears coaching job
The first con Barnwell brings up with Chicago is their division. When the other three squads didn’t break much of a sweat clinching a playoff spot this year, it could definitely intimate some of the coaching candidates in this cycle.
The other negative that was pointed out was the team’s lack of star power. It’s easy to say that Jaylon Johnson is the biggest “star” in the organization and his play certainly represented. Williams surely could be on his way to being a star, but there is still a way to go before we reach that point. The Montez Sweat contract hasn’t looked great for general manager Ryan Poles so far, and DJ Moore can be seen as another high-caliber player on the roster.
With every job opening across the NFL this offseason, there will be pros and cons. It will be up to the top coaching candidates for the Bears to weigh those out and decide whether they are truly interested in becoming the next head coach of a historic franchise.
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