At last: Something newsworthy re. Bears coach search?

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For much of the past week the flood of local news regarding individuals in the Bears coach-search process has been self-serving. The predictably glowing testimonials about each candidate and GM Phil Emery may be accurate insights but this sort of thing is not uncommonly motivated by media members eager to curry favor with the possible new coach or with Emery.

But ESPNs Adam Schefter put out something with a touch of objectivity Saturday when he spoke with two of the interviewed candidates, who told him they have never interviewed with anyone as prepared and detailed as Emery. Dane Noble over at SB Nation gives a good account of the situation.

Anonymous sources can be suspect, but in this case, because Adam doesnt name the candidates (which could be Tampa Bays Mike Sullivan, Atlantas Keith Armstrong, even Dave Toub or Marc Trestman), I give it more cred rather than less. No one is using the platform to make nice-nice with Emery.

Being thorough, detailed and prepared doesnt assure a winning result. Anybody whos gone into an exam stone-cold ready and come out with a C is nodding here. But unprepared and un-detailed could all but assure a whiff.

As I noted previously, Emerys 13-candidate (for now) guest list is in the tradition of Mark Hatleys preliminary search for Dave Wannstedts replacement in 1999.

More important, the process has not yet cost the Bears one of their prime candidates; they werent after Doug Marrone (Buffalo), Rob Chudzinski (Cleveland) or Andy Reid (Kansas City) and the other four teams coach-questing are on a pace not appreciably faster than the Bears.

The speed of their offensive-coordinator search in 2010 cost the Bears several top college coaches because the search was dragging within range of recruiting. The Bears settled on Mike Martz.

So far the Bears are not settling for anything.

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