The case for the Chicago Bears to hire Mike McCarthy right now

Hours away from being a true free agent, former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys and one-time Super Bowl champion with the Green Bay Packers Mike McCarthy will be in Halas Hall to interview for the Chicago Bears open head coaching job.

A week ago, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones denied requests to interview McCarthy. However, after a mutual parting of ways, McCarthy will now take interviews as he pleases, and Chicago is his first stop. Though he is not the most popular candidate this offseason (that honor belongs to Ben Johnson by a country mile), he is indisputably one of the most qualified head coaching candidates currently available.

This makes for an intriguing dilemma for the Chicago Bears. Presumably, they have Ben Johnson as their top target, but they can't interview him in person or offer him a job until the Lions' season ends. And with how Detroit has been playing, that might not be until February. Can GM Ryan Poles and team president Kevin Warren afford to wait that long before hiring their next head coach?

When hiring a head coach, time is of the essence.

Even though it's the NFL offseason, when a new head coach is hired, his work begins immediately. He must evaluate the current staff and decide who, if anyone, he wants to keep. He must hire coordinators and new staffers. He must bring over a playbook and scheme he wants to implement. Then, he must evaluate the roster with his coordinators and decide who can go and who is essential.

And all these evaluations and decisions must be done before free agency begins in March, followed swiftly by the NFL Draft in April. That's a lot to do in not a lot of time, especially if the new head coach can't even join his team until roughly a month before free agency starts.

What if Chicago's head coaching job isn't as attractive as Bears fans think?

The other part of this equation is the one Bears fans don't want to consider because of the awful implications. What if Ben Johnson is not at all enamored with the Bears? What if he would rather pick a rookie quarterback or a free agent than work with Caleb Williams? Maybe he doesn't want to stay in the NFC North.

If the Bears hold out hoping to hire Ben Johnson only to see him sign with someone else, what's their next move? McCarthy won't be available, that's for sure. Pete Carroll may no longer be interested, either. That would leave Poles and Warren having to decide between defensive coordinators or less successful offensive coordinators at a time when the development of their quarterback will determine their fates.

Say what you want about McCarthy's recent postseason failures, he would be a good hire for the Bears.

With Mike Vrabel officially in New England, McCarthy is probably the best head coaching candidate remaining not named Ben Johnson. In fact, ESPN's Dan Orlovsky thinks that McCarthy would be even better for the Bears than Johnson. Not many may agree with that, but it's not totally crazy when you look at McCarthy's resume.

The Bears should, of course, shoot for the moon and try to get the next Shanahan or McVay to lead the team, but it may not be wise to put all their eggs into that basket. Assuming their interview with McCarthy goes well, Poles and Warren must consider hiring him soon, even if it means passing on Johnson.

That's not to say they must do so, but it would be dereliction of duty to not openly discuss it.

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