Ben Johnson Eyeing Former NFL Head Coach as Bears Defensive Coordinator

The reported new Chicago boss appears to be moving quickly to assemble a staff.

Ben Johnson before the Lions' 23–20 win over the Bears on Nov. 28, 2024. / David Reginek-Imagn Images

On Monday, Chicago Bears fans received the report they'd been waiting for: the team, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, is hiring Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as its new head coach.

That's not all, however.

Schefter followed up his initial dispatch by reporting that former New Orleans Saints coach Dennis Allen is the leading candidate to become the Bears' next defensive coordinator.

Allen, 52, was fired by the Saints on Nov. 4—and has a 26-53 record in six seasons as a head coach.

However, the former Texas A&M defensive back has been far more effective as a coordinator. In his two most recent seasons in that role—2020 and 2021 with New Orleans—his defenses finished fifth and fourth in scoring defense, respectively.

Ben Johnson has been busy assembling a star-studded coaching staff. The leading candidate to become his defensive coordinator in Chicago is former Saints HC Dennis Allen, per league sources. pic.twitter.com/iJCbMLJSLe

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 20, 2025

Chicago, on the other hand, has finished in the bottom eight of the league in total defense in two of the past three seasons. That hasn't happened since the Bears finished 30th in total defense in both 2013 and 2014 under coach Marc Trestman.

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