Chicago Bears' newest head coach, Ben Johnson, is already trying to add two new coaches to his staff. The Windy City franchise hired the Lions' offensive coordinator just a few hours ago, as quarterback Caleb Williams and company look to be much more competitive in a stacked NFC North Conference. Former New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen is already a leading candidate for Chicago's new defensive coordinator position.
In addition, ESPN Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter gave more insight into who else Ben Johnson is targeting for his new staff.
“Bears also are heavily pursuing former Saints interim head coach Darren Rizzi as their special teams coach, per sources. He has interest from over a half-dozen teams, but if Rizzi doesn't land a head coaching job, Chicago is his potential landing spot.”
Ben Johnson is trying to bring stability to a struggling franchise
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Darren Rizzi would be an excellent hire for this position. The Saints interim head coach has been a special teams coordinator in the NFL for nearly 15 years and has been successful everywhere he's gone. As Johnson adds to his staff, the Bears' new hire has one primary mission: to get the best out of Caleb Williams. The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner and last year's No. 1 overall pick had an uneven rookie year.
While Williams' touchdown-to-interception ratio looks solid at 20 to 6, the rookie quarterback's QBR was 28th overall. The Bears' offense ultimately struggled, scoring just 18.2 points per game. After an optimistic 4-2 start, Chicago lost ten straight games, going 1-5 against NFC North foes. All of those rivals are now grappling with difficult playoff losses right now.
While the Bears will need to improve significantly to contend in their conference, Chicago fans finally have reason to be optimistic about the future. The organization has only made the playoffs in two of the last fourteen years and has not won a game in the postseason since 2010. It's been hard to watch, as the franchise has struggled with young quarterbacks on multiple occasions during this time span.
However, Caleb Williams is the most talented quarterback this organization has ever had. Ben Johnson's success and legacy in the Windy City will ultimately depend on whether he can develop Williams into an elite leader under center. If the former Lions offensive coordinator can, that's a scary prospect for the rest of the NFC North and the NFL as a whole.
