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17 candidates to replace Chuck Pagano as Bears' DC

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No team has more money committed to its defense in 2021 than the Bears, who will seek a defensive coordinator after Chuck Pagano decided to retire, per multiple reports. Who could be a candidate to replace Pagano and get this highly-paid defense back to being among the best in the NFL?

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Rodgers was the only member of Pagano’s staff to be a position coach under Vic Fangio. He followed John Fox from Denver to Chicago in 2015 and has been here ever since, having developed an outrageous amount of talent – Akiem Hicks, Eddie Goldman, Roy Robertson-Harris, Bilal Nichols, Nick Williams, Brent Urban and Mario Edwards Jr. all flourished under his watch. Rodgers was named the 2018 defensive line coach of the year and is held in extremely high regard by his players.

“Great coach, great coach,” Hicks said in 2019. “Jay Rodgers’ strengths are my weaknesses. My strengths are his weaknesses. I think we pair pretty well together — like Jack and Coke.”

Rodgers’ success developing talent would make him a natural internal candidate, and the 44-year-old does have an interesting background having coached quarterbacks and wide receivers at the college level. The Bears should at least interview Rodgers and at most give him strong consideration for a promotion.

2/17

Monachino is the only defensive coach currently on staff who’s been a coordinator at the NFL level before, having spent 2016 and 2017 as Pagano’s DC with the Indianapolis Colts. His work with Terrell Suggs as the Baltimore Ravens’ outside linebackers coach from 2010-2015 is well regarded, but Leonard Floyd and Robert Quinn had disappointing seasons with Monachino in Chicago. Khalil Mack, too, failed to reach double digit sacks in both 2019 and 2020.

Promoting Monachino would be a nod toward continuity, but is continuity really what this defense needs after two good-not-great seasons?

3/17

DeLeone is 33 and just completed only his third season as a high level NFL position coach, but he’s been on the same staff as Matt Nagy since 2013, when the Kansas City Chiefs hired him as a defensive quality control coach. He had a hand in developing Roquan Smith into an elite player in 2020 – which, notably, saw Smith become a true three-down linebacker who communicated the defensive calls to his teammates.

Maybe DeLeone has some good ideas about how to operate a defense. It might be worth finding out, but it also might be worth keeping him on the coaching staff in 2021 to continue to work with Smith.

4/17

While Eddie Jackson regressed since Desai took over as his full-time position coach, there are some things to like here. Desai is a smart, detailed Fangio disciple who the Bears valued so much they kept him from going to Denver when Fangio was hired there two years ago.

He doesn’t have a traditional background in coaching, but then again, Brandon Staley – the Fangio mentee who’s now excelling as the Rams’ defensive coordinator – didn’t either.

5/17

If the Bears look outside the walls of Halas Hall, their first call should be to Glenn. He might be tough to get – he interviewed for the New York Jets’ head coaching position and is considered a rising star among position coaches – but the Bears should at least try.

Glenn’s 15-year NFL career, scouting background and work with New Orleans’ secondary established him as one of the brightest football minds who could potentially be available for a defensive coordinator job. Maybe he could view the Bears as a springboard to being a head coach. This feels like the Bears would have to pitch him on their opening – which might not come with much long-term job security – just as much as he’d have to pitch the Bears on his own skillset.

6/17

Another swing-for-the-fences call should go out to Leonhard, the whip-smart former NFL safety who’s done some great things as Wisconsin’s defensive coordinator since 2017. Sean McVay was interested in Leonhard before hiring Brandon Staley a year ago and the Badgers have consistently had one of college football’s best defenses under his watch. He’d be a home run hire if the Bears could coax him across the border.

Leonhard could probably jump to the NFL if he wants, but would he want to leave the rock-solid job security he has in Madison for a tenuous situation in Chicago?

That’s a question plenty of the potential top candidates for the Bears’ defensive coordinator job will have to ask themselves before signing on. Leonhard included, if the Bears were to express interest. 

7/17

The Bears interviewed Edwards, then the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive coordinator, for their open head coaching position in 2018 before hiring Nagy. Cynically, that interview could be viewed as a Rooney Rule checkmark – the Bears interviewed two defensive coaches that cycle, one of whom was Vic Fangio, who was much more likely to get the job if Ryan Pace decided to go with a defensive-minded coach.

But that interview could provide valuable intel on Edwards, who was Mike Zimmer’s defensive coordinator from 2014-2019 and helped build some of the NFL’s most well-organized defenses in that span. Edwards is only 53 and could be enticed by another coordinator opportunity, although he does have prior experience coaching with new Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, so it’s not a slam dunk that he’d leave Dallas.

8/17

Alexander, a former safety and second-round pick of the Detroit Lions, has only been an NFL position coach for one year – 2020 with Miami. But Xavien Howard led the NFL with 10 interceptions under Alexander’s watch, and there are few defensive minds better to learn from than Brian Flores.

Hiring the 36-year-old Alexander would be bold, certainly, but after going with the “safe” option in Pagano two years ago, maybe Nagy and Pace take a swing on an unproven-yet-promising young coach. Alexander might fit that description.

9/17

The 50-year-old has had two prior stints as a defensive coordinator (Detroit, 2007-2008; Washington, 2015-2016) and has been part of Sean McVay’s coaching staff since he arrived in Los Angeles in 2017. But that also means he’s worked under both a deeply experienced, well-respected coordinator in Wade Phillips and one of the foremost young defensive minds in football in Brandon Staley.

Barry seems to have good job security in Los Angeles thanks to that assistant head coach title. But maybe he’s picked some things up from Phillips and Staley that could make a third shot at coordinating a defense more successful than the previous two.

10/17

It was only a few years ago that Austin was attracting head coaching interviews – although there was speculation, which Austin didn’t refute, that he was only being interviewed to satisfy the NFL’s Rooney Rule. One of those interviews was with the Bears in 2015, right after Ryan Pace was hired as general manager.

So the Bears know Austin, even if it’s been a while. He built a solid reputation as the Lions’ defensive coordinator from 2014-2017, but was fired midway through the 2018 season as the Bengals’ defensive coordinator. He’s been a senior defensive assistant and secondary coach for Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh ever since, where he’s had a hand in developing star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.

11/17

Washington was part of Lovie Smith’s coaching staff from 2008-2010, first as a defensive assistant and then as the Bears’ defensive line coach in 2010. Washington left Chicago in 2011 to follow Ron Rivera to Carolina, where he coached the D-line until replacing Bills coach Sean McDermott as defensive coordinator in 2018. After Rivera and the Panthers split, Washington re-united with McDermott in Buffalo in 2020.

While Washington does have prior coordinator experience, he’d be somewhat of an under-the-radar candidate. But his experience with Rivera and longtime work on defensive lines could get him a look in Chicago.

12/17

If Morris is not hired as a head coach in this cycle, he’ll certainly be considered by plenty of teams looking for a defensive coordinator. Morris did some good things as the Falcons’ defensive coordinator/interim head coach in 2020, including a grind-it-out near-upset of the Kansas City Chiefs – this despite having a paucity of talent on defense.

Morris, too, has experience coaching on the offensive side of the ball and could perhaps provide additional high-level insight for Nagy.

13/17

One of the wrinkles the Bears may encounter is that their defensive coordinator opening may not be all that alluring for up-and-coming candidates, or for venerable coordinators looking for one final shot at running a defense. That’s what happens when the head coach doesn’t have long-term job security.

It’s fair to wonder if Nagy ran into this problem last year with his overhaul of his offensive coaching staff – offensive coordinator Bill Lazor was an analyst at Penn State, while tight ends coach Clancy Barone and offensive coordinator Juan Castillo were both out of football in 2019 before being hired in 2020.

While the Bears’ defense still has loads of talent, the specter of Nagy being fired after the 2021 season may make some prospective candidates skittish.

That leads me to Bettcher, who once was an up-and-coming coordinator with the Arizona Cardinals before his defenses with the New York Giants fell flat in 2018 and 2019. Bettcher did not coach in 2020, but at 42 years old, he’ll likely look for another landing spot soon. A boom-or-bust opportunity with the Bears could interest Bettcher; the Bears might be interested in him anyway, but if they can’t land someone who’s currently employed, they may have to dip into the pool of coaches looking to jump back in after a year off.

14/17

Richard did not coach in 2020 after Mike McCarthy decided not to retain him upon being hired as the Cowboys’ head coach. Richard was instrumental in developing the “Legion of Boom” in Seattle and spent three years as the Seahawks’ defensive coordinator.

He’s still well regarded around NFL circles but might be waiting for the perfect opportunity to resurface.

15/17

 

There was some thought the Las Vegas Raiders might be interested in Phillips, though Jon Gruden wound up hiring Gus Bradley this week. The 73-year-old Phillips would bring decades of experience and a fantastic Twitter account to the table, and the Bears would do well to at least kick around the idea of talking to him.

Robert Quinn had 8 ½ sacks with Phillips – one of the best pass-rushing coordinators football’s even seen – coaching him in 2017 with the Los Angeles Rams, for whatever it’s worth.

 

16/17

The 71-year-old Marinelli was the Bears’ defensive coordinator 2010-2012 (and in 2012, the Bears had one of the best defenses in NFL history – even better than they had in 2018, by DVOA). Want a nostalgia hire? This would be it. Unless…

17/17

You *really* want a nostalgia hire? Call up Smith, who was fired by Illinois last year, and see if he’d be willing to come back to Soldier Field as a coordinator.

This probably wouldn’t be a particularly good idea – the Tampa 2 was a dying defense seven years ago – but I suppose Nagy could do worse than trying to hire the best Bears coach of the last 25 years.

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