Ranking the Top Five Head Coaching Candidates for the Chicago Bears

In what unfortunately seems like a regular occurrence this decade, the Bears are once again back in the market for a new head coach after firing Matt Eberflus in season, the first in season firing of a head coach in franchise history. With this Bears season becoming a wash, the most exciting thing over the past few weeks for Bears fans has been looking into potential head coaching options to pair with Caleb Williams in 2025. With Ryan Poles’ job on the line, he has to absolutely nail the head coaching hire (assuming he is retained at the end of this season). This is my personal ranking of the top five coaching candidates that Poles should consider hiring for the 19th head coach position in franchise history.

5. Mike Vrabel

If choosing to go the route of hiring a head coach with previous success at the NFL level, Mike Vrabel would be the Bears best option. In a stunning Black Monday move last year, Vrabel was fired by the Titans and did not find a new landing spot as a head coach in 2024. With a 56-48 record over six seasons with the Titans and an AFC Championship appearance in 2019, Vrabel will be in high demand this offseason when teams are looking to fill their head coach vacancies.

Vrabel’s best statistical season on offense was in 2020, where the Titans ranked fourth in the league in points per game with 30.7 and second in rushing yards per game with 168.1. Ryan Tannehill also had a career resurgence working with Vrabel and then offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, winning comeback player of the year in 2019 and throwing for a career high 33 passing touchdowns in 2020.

Being completely honest, Vrabel would not be an ideal hire for the Bears in my eyes. While he provides a veteran presence and a likable personality in the locker room for the players, he is not the best option to unlock Caleb Williams’ full potential as a quarterback. Vrabel’s offenses declined significantly when Arthur Smith left for a head coaching gig, ranking 28th and 27th in points per game in the last two seasons of Vrabel’s tenure in Tennessee.

Hiring Vrabel would be the safe option for the Bears with his track record, but it would also provide the team with a lower ceiling than the options below. Vrabel is a brilliant defensive mind, but the Bears have hid behind defensive minds too many times in the past. The Bears inability to forward think and adapt to today’s NFL offense has held the team back. The team needs to break the continuity and hire one of the four offensive minded options below.

4. Joe Brady

The youngest candidate on the list, Joe Brady has put together quite the resume at just 35 years old. Rising to relevance in 2019 as the passing game coordinator behind Joe Burrow’s National Championship winning season at LSU, Brady has faced some up and downs in his coaching career but has put himself back on the map as a potential head coaching candidate since taking over as the Buffalo offensive coordinator midseason last year.

The Bills have had a top ten offense in both total yards and points per game over the past two seasons. Brady successfully turned a once slumping offense in Buffalo to one of the league’s undisputed best by making the offense more balanced. By unleashing a more efficient rushing attack, running back James Cook has unlocked his full potential along with Josh Allen becoming a more dominant force in the ground game. These changes have put Josh Allen in the drivers seat to win his first MVP award in 2024, as Allen has recorded a stat line of 3,549 passing yards, 26 passing touchdowns, 514 rushing yards and 11 rushing touchdowns with two weeks remaining. Allen also became the first player in NFL history to throw for three touchdowns and score three rushing touchdowns in the same game.

Before his stint in Buffalo, the 2019 LSU offense that Brady assisted with as the passing game coordinator averaged 48.4 points per game and 401.6 passing yards per game. This season was notorious for Joe Burrow’s breakout, as Burrow won the Heisman Trophy and National Championship for LSU by recording an astounding 5,671 passing yards and 60 touchdowns. Brady then jumped ship to Carolina the next season to serve as the offensive coordinator for two seasons, in which he struggled with a lame duck offense that ranked towards the bottom of the league in 2021.

Brady’s work in Carolina can be viewed as a blemish in his resume, as his success in Buffalo and LSU make him an excellent head coaching candidate. However, there are some concerns as to whether or not the Bears would be the best fit. With Brady’s recent offenses in Buffalo focusing on prioritizing the run game, there are some concerns as to whether or not Caleb Williams would fit the current prototype of a quarterback in a Brady-led offense. While I think his work with Burrow at LSU proves that Brady is able to adapt to the skills of his quarterback under center, I would not hire him over the guys ranked below due to the lesser experience and higher risk involved.

3. Liam Coen

Rising up the ranks this season, Liam Coen is an intriguing option at head coach for the Bears. Taking over as offensive coordinator for the Buccaneers after Dave Canales left for Carolina this past offseason, the Bucs’ offense has not skipped a beat this season.

Under Coen’s leadership, the offense has improved substantially. The unit has improved from 313 yards per game (23rd) to third most in the league with 389.7 per game, from 20.5 points per game (20th) to 28.5 points per game (fifth), and from 224.2 passing yards per game (16th) to 246.1 passing yards per game, the leagues third best.

What makes these feats even more impressive is that Coen has built an efficient offense with extended absences to top receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Baker Mayfield has made the jump from above average to elite in the process, as he has thrown for a career high 34 touchdowns, which is also the third highest in the NFL. Baker is also fourth in the league in passing yards with 3,920 and on pace to finish with his second consecutive 4,000-yard season.

Prior to his success with the Bucs, Coen’s ascent can be traced back to the Sean McVay coaching tree. He served as the Rams’ wide receiver and assistant quarterback coach from 2019-20 before heading the college route to be the offensive coordinator for Kentucky in 2021. Coen’s season at Kentucky was notable, as he helped develop Will Levis into a top NFL draft prospect with Levis having his best statistical season under Coen’s offense (2,827 passing yards, 24 TDs). Coen returned to the Rams the next season in a higher role, serving as the offensive coordinator under McVay. After a rough 2022 season for the Rams, Coen returned to Kentucky for a second stint as offensive coordinator in 2023 before taking over in Tampa Bay.

Personally, I think Coen is a great candidate for the Bears and is one they need to seriously consider letting take the reins next year. His biggest drawback is his lack of experience, but a young, first time head coach is one that I would prefer for a young team like the Bears in need of a cultural identity. Coen spending years learning under McVay certainly has molded his offensive mind, and the Vikings success under Kevin O’Connell is a prime example of how coaches under McVay are given the keys to thrive.

Seeing what Coen was able to craft up this season with injuries across the offense makes me believe that he could do magical things with Caleb Williams and his arguably more talented receiving core. Coen is near the top of my coaching wish list, with experience being the sole thing preventing him from ranking higher on my list.

2. Todd Monken

If the Bears are looking for someone with lots of experience calling plays, look no further than Todd Monken. Monken became an offensive coordinator at the NFL level in 2016 and has propelled his name up to the top of the head coaching candidates list after becoming the Ravens offensive coordinator in 2023. Monken’s work on the Ravens offense over the past two seasons has seen Lamar Jackson playing at NFL MVP level, anchoring one of the leagues most dominant offenses.

Monken started his coaching career as the Jaguars’ wide receiver coach, serving in that position from 2007-2010. Kickstarting a pattern, he left for the NCAA in 2011 to become the Oklahoma State offensive coordinator for two seasons. Monken received a NCAA head coaching gig in the 2013 season at Southern Miss, in which he stayed three seasons accumulating a 13-26 record before resigning to become the Buccaneers offensive coordinator in 2016.

Monken’s NFL offensive coordinator duties got off to a bit of a rough start, but improved over the course of his tenure with the Bucs from 2016-2018. His 2018 season in particular stands out, as the Buccaneers ranked third in yards per game with 415.5 and first in passing yards per game. Despite the offensive efficiency, Monken was let go of by the Bucs after the 2018 season. He filled offensive coordinator duties for the Browns in 2019 before accepting a job as Georgia’s offensive coordinator in 2020. Monken’s offenses in Athens were amongst the leagues best, as the team averaged 38.6 and 41.1 points per game and finished with a 29-1 overall record in the 2021 and 2022 seasons.

In his return to the NFL, Monken has revived the Ravens passing offense and transformed it into one of the league’s best. This season, the Ravens rank fifth in passing yards per game with 242.5 and first in overall yards per game with 423.7. Lamar Jackson has also made huge strides as a passer under Monken, as he won the 2023 MVP award with 3,678 passing yards and 24 touchdowns. Lamar has somehow improved from his MVP season in 2024, as he is on pace to finish the season throwing for 4,000 passing yards for the first time in his career, as well as throwing a career high of 37 touchdowns with two weeks to go.

The biggest drawback to hiring Monken is that he is 58 years old without an NFL head coaching gig, something that draws red flags as to why he has never been given a chance to coach an NFL team over the years. However, with the efficiency his offense has had over the past decade, it is worth the risk to give him a chance. With head coaching experience at the college level, Monken knows what it is like to lead a team and can learn from past mistakes at Southern Miss. Monken’s work with Lamar makes the prospects of him working with Caleb Williams super enticing. Monken is a coordinator that I believe could indisputably get Caleb to play at an MVP level, the big question is whether he has what it takes to lead an entire team. I think that this question of leadership is a risk that the possible reward is well worth.

1. Ben Johnson

Rounding out the list is the most popular head coaching candidate and division rival Ben Johnson. The hype surrounding Johnson is more than warranted when looking at his success with the Lions over the past decade.

Johnson began his tenure with the Lions in 2019 as an offensive quality control coach, serving various positions on the coaching staff before getting promoted to offensive coordinator in 2022 and beginning his stint as the primary play caller for the Lions. Johnson wasted no time producing results for the Lions offense, as since taking over as offensive coordinator the Lions have ranked near the top of the league in several metrics. Over the past three years, the Lions have ranked in the top ten in passing yards per game (8th, 2nd, 2nd), top five in points per game (5th, 5th, 1st) and top ten in rushing yards per game over the past two seasons (5th, 6th).

The career resurrection of Jared Goff is another highlight of Johnson’s regime, as Goff went from a bridge quarterback in the Stafford trade to one that the Lions have built a top offense around. Goff has thrown for over 4,000 yards and 25 touchdowns in three consecutive seasons, ranking in the top five in passing yards for all three of these seasons.

The utilization of young offensive talent on the Lions is the most exciting prospect of bringing Johnson aboard. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam Laporta and Jahmyr Gibbs have all ascended to stardom under Johnson’s play calling and are indisputably some of the best skill players at their position. Johnson’s work with St. Brown in particular stands out to me, as he went from a fourth round receiver off the general public’s radar to a top five wideout in the league. St. Brown is also one of the leagues best route runners, something that Bears receiver Rome Odunze does exceptionally well and will hopefully translate to his elite development assuming Johnson comes to Chicago.

Whatever Johnson wants from the Bears, they should give in and do whatever it takes to make him the next head coach of the Bears. He checks all the boxes for what the team is looking for in a head coach: a brilliant, offensive mind who isn’t afraid to make tough play calling decisions to win games. He is on the top of my wishlist and should hopefully be on the top of the Bears list as well.

Who do you want to see as the Bears head coach next season? Let me know in the comments.