The Chicago Bears landed one of, if not the most wanted, head coach candidates of the offseason when they hired former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson.
With his decision to return to the Lions last season, the 2024 Assistant Coach of the Year appears to have used his extra time to flesh out his present coaching staff. The Bears announced Johnson's full coaching staff on Thursday.
Perhaps the biggest hire to the Bears' staff was the hiring of defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. The 52-year-old coach was the New Orleans Saints head coach from 2022 to 2024 and served as the team's defensive coordinator from 2015 to 2021.
Bears full coaching staff, per ChicagoBears.com:
- Head Coach: Ben Johnson
- Defensive Coordinator: Dennis Allen
- Offensive Coordinator: Declan Doyle
- Special Teams Coordinator: Richard Hightower
- Assistant Head Coach / Wide Receivers: Antwaan Randle El
- Offensive Quality Control: Matt Aponte
- Quarterbacks: J.T. Barrett
- Running Backs: Eric Bieniemy
- Assistant Special Teams: Anthony Blevins
- Offensive Quality Control: Zach Cable
- Assistant Offensive Line: Kyle DeVan
- Tight Ends: Jim Dray
- Defensive Line: Jeremy Garrett
- Assistant Defensive Backs / Safeties: Matt Giordano
- Pass Game Coordinator / Defensive Backs: Al Harris
- Senior Defensive Assistant / Defensive Line: Bill Johnson
- Assistant Linebackers: Kevin Koch
- Defensive Assistant / Nickels: Cannon Matthews
- Defensive Quality Control: Kenny Norton III
- Offensive Assistant - QB/WR: Robbie Picazo
- Offensive Line: Dan Roushar
- Linebackers: Richard Smith
- Pass Game Coordinator: Press Taylor
- Head Strength & Conditioning: Pierre Ngo
- Assistant Strength & Conditioning: Noble Landry
- Assistant Strength & Conditioning: Allison Haley
- Senior Director of Coaching Operations: Justin Rudd
- Manager of Coaching Administration: Chavis Cook
- Director of Research and Analysis: Harrison Freid
Doyle has been a fast-riser in NFL coaching circles. He was an offensive assistant with the Saints from 2019 to 2022 and was the Denver Broncos tight ends coach for the last two seasons.
Randle El joins Johnson from the Lions. The former NFL receiver won Super Bowl XL as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Super Bowl LV while with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaching staff. He was Detroit's wide receivers coach from 2021 to 2024.
Johnson will be tasked to get the most out of quarterback Caleb Williams, the Bears' No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The 23-year-old signal-caller passed for 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns and six interceptions in his rookie campaign.
