The Chicago Bears probably won’t hire a new head coach for at least a couple of months, but a short list has already emerged and includes some interesting names.
Dan McNeil of the Danny Mac Show reported via X on Tuesday, December 10, that Chicago’s initial wish list is just four people — two of whom are coordinators within the NFC North Division.
“Sources confirm these FOUR coaches are on the Bears’ list for HC: Ben Johnson, Brian Flores, Joe Brady, Mike Vrabel,” McNeil wrote. “They may want to talk to more candidates, but they’re targeting these four. More as soon as I get it.”
Johnson, the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions, is an obvious choice and will probably be high on the list of candidates for every NFL team looking to make a change at the top of its coaching staff in 2025. Vrabel, a Super Bowl champion player with the New England Patriots and former head coach of the Tennessee Titans, also fits that mold.
The most interesting name on the list belongs to Flores, formerly the head coach of the Miami Dolphins and the current defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings, as he represents considerable risk and reward as a head coaching candidate — particularly when it comes to rookie quarterback Caleb Williams.
Brian Flores’ Lawsuit Against NFL May Have Kept Him Out of Head Coaching Positions Over Past 3 Years
GettyMinnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
Flores remains involved in a class action lawsuit alleging discriminatory employment practices against the league and several of its teams, which he initiated after the Dolphins fired him in January 2022.
His legal action hasn’t stopped Flores from working in the NFL, as he caught on as a defensive coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers for one season before joining the Vikings, for which he has served as DC for the past two years. Flores couldn’t drop the lawsuit now even if he wanted to because it is a class action filing and involves several other plaintiffs.
Several analysts have speculated that the legal proceedings have kept Flores out of head coaching interviews over the past two seasons, though no official member of any NFL front offices have ever gone on record admitting as much.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa Ripped Brian Flores as ‘Terrible Person’ After 2 Years Together in Miami
GettyMiami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Flores has also dealt with controversy surrounding his treatment of Tua Tagovailoa and the quarterback’s development when the two were together in Miami. Tagovailoa called out Flores earlier this year over their issues, comparing him directly to Mike McDaniel who succeeded Flores as head coach of the Dolphins.
“To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning, and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right,” Tagovailoa said to “The Dan LeBatard Show with Stugotz” in August. “And then you have somebody else come in and tell you, ‘Dude, you are the best fit for this. You are accurate, you are the best whatever, you are this, you are that.’ How would that make you feel, listening to one or the other? You see what I’m saying?”
Tagovailoa went on to call Flores a “terrible person,” and the aftermath led to Flores speaking publicly in response.
“I just want to say, look, I’m genuinely happy, genuinely happy for the success that Tua’s had, and I really wish him nothing but the best,” Flores said a couple days later. “Player relationships are very important to me … that’s kind of the foundation of coaching. I got into coaching because I was impacted as a young guy by my high school coaches, my college coaches, going all the way to Pop Warner. I got into coaching because I wanted to make that same kind of impact — positive impact — pour into young people, help them become the best versions of themselves.”
Brian Flores’ History With QBs Could Be Major Concern for Bears, Caleb Williams
GettyQuarterback Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears.
Flores came up through the Patriots organization and learned defense under legendary head coach and defensive mastermind Bill Belichick.
He took over a bad Dolphins team that went 5-11 in his first season, but followed that up with a 10-6 campaign and then a 9-8 year, after which the franchise fired Flores. His record as a head coach is just 24-25, but his success exceeded those figures when examining the context of the Dolphins team he took over and how quickly things turned around.
And the Vikings’ exotic blitz packages and coverages have been the subject of praise from players and coaches and executives around the league for the past two years. Minnesota is 11-2 and Flores is a major reason why.
His rocky past with Tagovailoa could be of concern in Chicago, where Williams has struggled through his first professional campaign and has already had two offensive coordinators and two head coaches. Flores is not an offense-first coach, nor a quarterback whisperer, and the Bears might do well to hire that kind of skill set.
However, Flores could be the culture changer and “leader of men” that Chicago team president and CEO Kevin Warren said recently that he wants in the next personality to step into the role of head coach.
Thomas Brown, the Bears’ interim head coach for the remainder of the season, will also likely get a shot at the long-term job. However, he started this year as the pass game coordinator before two firings elevated him to offensive coordinator and then head coach, so he may need some more experience on an offensive staff before he’s ready to run a team full-time.
