Caleb Williams’ Former Coach Top Contender for Bears Job: Report

Thomas Brown will be the interim head coach of the Chicago Bears for the remainder of the season, but the team will cast a wide net when deciding who will get the job on a more permanent basis beginning in 2025.

Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson of the Detroit Lions is at the top of the list for just about every team that will be looking for a new leading man on the sidelines next year, including Chicago. However, Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN each brought up Washington Commanders offensive coordinator and former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as one of the likely options just underneath Johnson on the totem pole.

“I’m also curious about the buzz in Chicago around Kliff Kingsbury if the Bears can’t get Detroit OC Ben Johnson,” Graziano wrote. “Kingsbury’s success with rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels in Washington this season is a point in his favor, and he worked with Williams at USC last season.”

Fowler agreed that Kingsbury is likely to get a look, though he added it’s early in the process to deem him a true favorite for the job, even despite the Bears’ recent interest in Kingsbury as a play caller.

“I suspect Kingsbury will be a candidate in Chicago, which might be his best chance,” Fowler wrote. “The Bears already have intel on him after interviewing him twice to be their offensive coordinator in January.”

Kliff Kingsbury Mentioned by Several NFL Insiders as Candidate for Bears Job

GettyOffensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury of the Washington Commanders.

ESPN’s insiders aren’t the only ones who have had Kingsbury at the top of mind since the Bears fired Matt Eberflus last Friday, one day following a disastrous 3-point loss to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving.

“Here’s an interesting name to watch — Kliff Kingsbury,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Sunday. “Of course, [he] worked with Caleb Williams at USC and [is] now thriving as the [offensive coordinator] of the Washington Commanders. Certainly a name to keep an eye on.”

Daniels has completed nearly 70% of his passes during his rookie campaign under Kingsbury for 2,819 yards, 15 TDs and 6 INTs. The Commanders are 8-5 on the season, while Daniels is in the running for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Kevin Warren Clear About What Bears Will Look for in New Head Coach

The theme has been the same in just about every conversation involving who the Bears will target in their upcoming coaching search: an offensive mind with a knack for dealing with and developing quarterbacks.

However, Chicago’s president and CEO Kevin Warren said on Monday that he was looking for a “leader of men,” which could mean the Bears will seek someone to set a strong culture in the locker room.

In that case, Brown could be a solid candidate to keep his job based on reports of his relationship with the current players. Or someone in the mold of a Dan Quinn (Commanders head coach) or Dan Campbell (Lions head coach) could prevail over an offensive guru on par with the likes of  Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams or Kevin O’Connell of the Minnesota Vikings.

“When you look at all of these elements as we sit here today, we are in a unique situation,” Warren said during his press conference. “This will be the most coveted job in the National Football League this year, and [general manager] Ryan [Poles] and I need to work hand-in-hand together to make sure we bring that to life, not only from a head coach standpoint but from an entire staff standpoint.”