If there was one hire by head coach Ben Johnson who could be categorized as a mystery, it was new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle. The 28-year-old has only been in the NFL for six years. Only two were spent as an actual position coach, running the tight ends for the Denver Broncos. That group hadn’t done anything special, so what was the allure of bringing Doyle in? Yes, Johnson will call the plays for the Chicago Bears, but one would think he’d prefer somebody with more experience to help keep things organized.
Why Doyle? Well, stories have begun emerging about him from Denver and New Orleans over the past few weeks. Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic caught wind of them at the Senior Bowl. Apparently, the young assistant has a reputation for being a genius with a work ethic to match. Despite only being a position coach, he prepared as if he were already a coordinator. People who encountered him couldn’t believe how fast he picked things up, even to the point where he was teaching retired All-Pros about the game.
It was eye-opening.
“He’s been preparing as if he’s an offensive coordinator from the very beginning,” said Upshaw, who coached the National team running backs at the Senior Bowl. “He builds his own play call sheet. He watches all the film. He puts his own runs and stuff in.”
In Denver, Doyle gave a presentation about shifts and motions to read a defense.
“I was like, how do you already know to do that?” Upshaw said. “Being a young coach, you’re trying to learn. He was showing that aspect.”
Former Saints offensive lineman Jahri Evans was a coaching intern in 2022 when Doyle was an offensive assistant.
“He’s a real smart guy,” Evans said. “He has to be the youngest OC in history? Bananas. I’m excited for him. He would show me some stuff on the computer that I was learning, he was teaching me a few things. Excited to see what he could cook up with that young quarterback.”
Ben Johnson probably saw himself in Declan Doyle.
The Bears head coach also had a reputation for being a young whiz kid not too long ago. Stories of his time in Miami practically mirror the same things said about Doyle: highly intelligent and an absolute grinder about work. Head coaches have a tendency to seek out assistants who are like-minded as them. Bill Belichick did it all the time in Cleveland and New England. Johnson likely knows what he can expect from Doyle because it is the same as he expects from himself. Such things can be reassuring for a young head coach.
Expectations around the league are high for him. Many feel Doyle should’ve been a coordinator already and it is only a matter of time before he becomes a head coach himself. If this is true, the Bears will benefit in a big way. Don’t be surprised if certain big plays or fun tricks get credited to him at some point this season. Ben Johnson loves experimenting. He needs other coaches to help generate ideas. It sounds like Doyle will be one of his most trusted sounding boards.
