Chicago Bears head coach search 2024: Brian Flores could clean things up

Now that the Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus, the all-important search for his replacement is underway. We start a series on possible replacements. First up is Brian Flores.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. For the fifth time since the Chicago Bears fired Lovie Smith in 2012, they are searching for a proper head coach. The previous four all crashed and burned quickly. Eberflus joins that list. In 46 career games as head coach he had a 14-32 record.

The franchise has become a laughingstock around the NFL. The once proud organization that dominated on the field and brought fear to opponents is now just one of the irrelevant teams lounging in the basement of the league.

Eberflus was so horrible that the Chicago Bears did something it has not done in its 125-season existence — they fired a head coach during the season. Even with the ridiculousness that Marc Trestman had when he replaced Smith he was allowed to finish off the season.

However, losing six games in a row, four of them due to coaching blunders, was enough for the players to force Chicago Bears Chairman of the Board George McCaskey to pull the trigger on the firing. The players revolted and forced Eberflus to flee the locker room after another embarrassing loss. General Manager Ryan Poles and CEO Kevin Warren met with McCaskey to get it done.

Now the Chicago Bears have to find a head coach who could turn things around. This is becoming like the franchise’s search for their quarterback. Despite the losing, Caleb Williams is showing that he could be the real deal. He has done everything but get wins.

What type of coach should the Chicago Bears go for? Do they hire an offensive minded coach who could help in Williams’ development? Most say yes, but they did that with Matt Nagy, yet he failed despite having two highly-drafted quarterbacks to develop.

Eberflus was a defensive coordinator before he was named head coach. That did not work out either.

Perhaps hiring a coach with experience could help. Eberflus, Nagy, and Trestman were all first-time head coaches. The other hire, John Fox, was a veteran head coach. However, it was clear that he was past his prime when the Chicago Bears hired him. His philosophy was out of step with what was going on around the league.

Now that the search is on for Eberflus’ replacement, we will profile some of the top candidates who could replace him. In our first in the new series, we will profile Brian Flores, who is currently the Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator.

Brian Flores Profile

Age: 43
Years coaching: 2004-Present
Head coach?: Miami Dolphins 2019-2021

Flores got a firsthand look at what Williams a week ago. Williams torched Flores’ defense, one of the best units in the league. Flores is able to confuse and pressure quarterbacks (especially young ones) into making big mistakes. That did not happen with Williams when the Bears faced the Vikings in Week 12.

Williams went 32 of 47 (68 percent completion rate) for 340 yards and 2 touchdowns. He had no interceptions and also ran for 33 yards. His passer rating of 103.1 was the third-best against the Vikings this season. If Flores was to get back in as a head coach, Williams certainly made an impression on him.

Just weeks ago, the Chicago Bears did another thing that never happened — fire an offensive coordinator during the season. It was the players who also forced management to make the move. The players felt that Waldron was a nice guy but maybe too nice. They didn’t feel he was hard enough on them.

Perhaps the same could be said of Eberflus.

Well, if they want tough, they would get it with Flores. He is a no-nonsense coach who runs his players hard. You have to want to be coached hard to want Flores to lead you. Some players just don’t want that. He was the Miami Dolphins head coach from 2019-2021. Here is what Tua Tagovailoa said about his experience.

To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning, and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right… how would that make you feel?

Flores will be tough on his players and expect them to play their best. Apparently this is what the Chicago Bears players want. We can see the difference between the glamourous Miami lifestyle and the hard-hat working attitude in Chicago.

The key, of course, is how Williams perceives Flores. Williams comes from USC and many felt he had that Hollywood attitude. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson went so far as to say that Williams had to keep that Hollywood stuff out of the locker room. While there was a story about some veterans wanting him benched, it was more a matter of Waldron’s coaching ruining him instead of them not liking him.

Anther thing to keep in mind is how Chicago Bears management would handle Flores. Flores had a problem with Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. Ross wanted Flores to tank during the 2019 season so Miami could finish with the worst record and the number one pick in the draft. He reportedly offered Flores $100,000 for each loss.

Additionally, Ross supposedly wanted Flores to contact a potential free agent quarterback in violation of the NFL’s tampering rules. That player turned out to be Tom Brady, who ultimately went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The league investigated the charge and found it to be true and punished the Dolphins for it.

Flores was so upset at Ross that he field a discrimination lawsuit against the league. Of course, that did not make him popular among league executives. The thought was that Flores’ coaching career was over. However, the Pittsburgh Steelers hired him in 2022 to be their linebackers coach/senior defensive assistant. Then the Vikings hired him to be their defensive coordinator in 2023.

Under Flores this season, the Vikings defense ranks fifth in points allowed and number one in turnovers. They also rank number one in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns allowed.

While the Dolphins were 24-25 under Flores, there was a lack of talent on those teams. His teams played hard every game and had a winning record in his final two seasons, including 10 wins in 2020.

If the players are behind Flores the fans will follow. His toughness and blue-collar work ethic will work great in Chicago. The problems he had in Miami are things that would be great for the Chicago Bears.

While the NFL owners normally stick up for each other, the McCaskeys are obsessed with doing things with good people. A coach who is honest and demands doing things the right way with his players, coaching staff, and owners is something that would be attractive to them.

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