Chicago Bears Interview Former Stanford Head Coach

The Chicago Bears are in need of a new head coach after a disappointing 5-12 season. Matt Eberflus started the year with the Bears, but was let go after a 4-8 start. He went 14-32 in his three seasons leading Chicago.

The search for the coach that will lead the Bears back to the postseason is already well underway, and the team announced on Tuesday night that they have recently interviewed former Stanford Cardinal head coach David Shaw.

We have completed an interview with head coach candidate David Shaw. pic.twitter.com/dPWsasuVhn
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) January 15, 2025

Shaw has 12 years of coaching experience in college, all at Stanford, and he compiled a cumulative 96-54 record. In his first year with the Cardinal, he had Andrew Luck, Zach Ertz, and Coby Fleener on the roster, among other standouts. Shaw presided over the Stanford program from 2011-2022.

In his time with the Cardinal, Shaw went 5-3 in Bowl games, but the program started on their current downward path in 2019 under his watch, going 4-8 that season, and followed that up with a 4-2 campaign in 2020. The Cardinal went 3-9 in his final two seasons as the NIL deals started to take over college athletics, and they have proceeded to go 3-9 in the two years since he departed.

The New Orleans Saints have also expressed interest in bringing Shaw in for an interview, so the Bears aren't alone in their thinking.

Shaw spent the 2023 season away from football, and was then hired as a senior personnel executive for the Denver Broncos, a role he was in for the entirety of the 2024 season. Now he is receiving interest from at least two teams as a potential head coach in the NFL.

According to reports, the Bears have already interviewed ten head coaching candidates since the end of the NFL regular season, and they are expected to add to that total on Wednesday with former Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy on his way to Halas Hall.

The Bears have a fairly easy pitch to sell potential head coaches, with the team consisting of plenty of talented players all over the roster, including last year's No. 1 pick, quarterback Caleb Williams.

Chicago will have the ability to pick the coach that will be the perfect fit for their team, but with David Shaw being involved in at least two interviews so far, it's possible that there will be more opportunities heading his way. He could even land his first NFL head coaching gig this offseason.