‘Thorough, diligent and exhaustive’: Inside Bears’ search for new coach and GM — and why the ever-growing candidate list could be a concern
CHICAGO — Let’s get something out of the way up front. The Chicago Bears are not playing musical chairs in their searches for a new general manager and head coach. There are enough impressive candidates available for both roles. The hunt need not be guided by suffocating deadline pressure.
It’s not as if, when the NFL’s search music stops, the Bears will be left without a place to sit. So the antsiest of Bears fans can pause and take a deep breath.
It’s all going to be OK.
Hopefully.
Maybe?
If the Bears conduct a shrewd and calculated exploration of their current applicants, they have a golden opportunity to make two successful hires in the coming weeks. But first and foremost, they must know what they’re truly after, what their vision is for this latest reboot and how they can unite a new GM with a new coach in a way that propels them forward as quickly as possible.
Pressure-packed chore? Absolutely. Attainable goal? Of course.
As of Wednesday morning, the Bears had completed preliminary virtual interviews with nine general manager candidates: Glenn Cook, Kwesi Adofo-Mansah, Champ Kelly, Jeff Ireland, Monti Ossenfort, Joe Schoen, Ed Dodds, Morocco Brown and Eliot Wolf. They also have spoken with six coaching candidates: Doug Pederson, Brian Flores, Nathaniel Hackett, Jim Caldwell, Brian Daboll and Matt Eberflus.
Still in the queue for GM interviews: Rick Smith, Omar Khan, JoJo Wooden, Ran Carthon, Reggie McKenzie and Ryan Poles. And on the coaching track, the team still plans to talk with Leslie Frazier, Byron Leftwich, Todd Bowles and Dan Quinn.
But the clock seems to be ticking. Especially with three other teams in the market for new GMs and seven looking to hire a coach. There’s an inherent risk in operating too slowly or methodically. But there is also potential danger in rushing things.
So in the middle of this simultaneous search process that seems like it could drag on forever, the Bears must remember that winning the race to hire isn’t the grand goal. Making the best possible hires for their needs and
