Despite dysfunctional appearance, Bears still rank near top of head coach openings

The Chicago Bears did themselves no favors early in their head coaching search, but this new ranking of job openings still lists them near the top.

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The 2024 season was a trying time for Chicago Bears fans. A year that began with an undeserved amount of hype and hope crashed and burned when Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels took advantage of Tyrique Stevenson's immaturity and completed an improbable game-winning Hail Mary.

The Bears, who were 4-2 at the time, never recovered. They lost 10 of their final 11 games, entering a tailspin of dysfunction that resulted in a head coach and offensive coordinator not surviving the season.

That brings us to the first week of Chicago's unofficial offseason, one that is almost as critical as landing the No. 1 overall pick that resulted in Caleb Williams last year.

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This time, the Bears have to land the right head coach. While there are plenty of qualified candidates who can restore Chicago's playoff hopes, those candidates must want to join the Bears organization.

Public perception of the Bears' front office hasn't been great during the early portion of the coaching search. General manager Ryan Poles is giving off vibes of a guy who's not entirely in control of the football operations while team president Kevin Warren's voice grows louder by the press conference. Chairman George McCaskey seems clueless at times, especially when he suggests the relationship between a team's GM and head coach is a non-factor in the hiring process.

Yikes.

It's not exactly a recipe to attract the brightest and most promising coaching candidates, but the Bears still have a certain mystique that should overcome the missteps of the people behind the scenes.

In fact, the Chicago Bears are such a powerful brand that they ranked No. 2 on a recent list of head coaching vacancies by Sports Illustrated.

"A solid stockpile of cap space with two of your most promising young players, Rome Odunze and Caleb Williams, on the second year of their rookie contracts; a historic franchise that has done the difficult work in churning a disjointed roster; a ready-to-compete team with a relatively low bar for a new incoming coach to be considered a success (i.e., help Williams, a smart and capable quarterback, get rid of the ball on time and understand how to manage a game); the kind of place where success would make you a statue-worthy legend (ignore what happened to Doug Pederson in Philadelphia)," wrote Conor Orr.

The New England Patriots ranked first on SI's list, but they're expected to hire Mike Vrabel in the coming days.

That leaves Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson in Chicago's crosshairs. If he's paying attention to breakdowns like this one, a few weird quotes from McCaskey and an awkward dynamic between Poles and Warren are non-issues.

The Chicago Bears coaching search is expected to drag on for several weeks, and once the ink dries on the Patriots' contract with Vrabel, the Bears should have their pick of the coaching litter.

As long as they don't screw it up.

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