Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus on FridayThe morning after another disastrous endgame scenario. Eberflus’ tenure will be unique, as the Bears looked so close to blowing their top opponents if not for a few moments — Hail Marys, missed timeouts, odd formations, unheralded quarterbacks, blocked kicks — that would once have been unforgettable. lifetime outliers for some franchises. Instead, these moments became the defining narrative of the Bears between 2022 and Thanksgiving ’24. A weekly rollercoaster ride turned haunted house.

Instead of looking back at these examples, we now look forward. Thomas Brown is the team’s interim head coach. Brown, a former Sean McVay lieutenant, sparked something in Caleb Williams after offensive coordinator Shane Waldron was fired a few weeks ago. We wrote about Brown potential coach two years agoBefore he became the offensive coordinator of the ill-fated team assembled by Frank Reich to coach Bryce Young at Carolina. Brown is the son of a pastor and, according to those who know him well, a dynamic speaker who can command a room. He has interviewed for head coaching positions in the past and received positive marks from those opportunities.

Considering we liked Brown two years ago, I’m certainly not ruling out the possibility of him taking over and entering the conversation. The current Bears power structure has a number of coaches on their staff that they value, including highly respected special teams coordinator Richard Hightower. I assume the move to promote Brown was intentional, giving him the chance to run the operation for the team’s final five games.

I don’t think the bears would make this move if they weren’t at least curious. Again, Hightower would be an obvious choice because he would allow both sides of the ball to remain somewhat steady. Brown will now be removed from the offensive meeting room, complicating his ability to focus on a unit that has shown some promise, as we saw with New York Jets interim Jeff Ulbrich. The potential advantage of sweeping a room off its feet is worth investigating.

What if it’s not Brown? Here are a few options. After completing the 2024-25 version of my annual list of future head coaches, these will be my recommendations, ranging from the obvious to the more wild card picks. If you would like to check out the full list, including the top 27 names I predict will be interviewing this cycle, please Click here.

Let’s move on to my short list:

The Detroit Lions’ offensive coordinator is undoubtedly being selective, and given his closeness to Dan Campbell, I wonder if he’ll take a job in the NFC North. To sum up the thoughts of one industry source I spoke to Friday morning: Johnson could wait forever for this so-called dream job. The Bears check a lot of boxes on everyone’s list: they’re a relatively patient team (Eberflus got two-plus years and Matt Nagy got four seasons before that), have a quarterback of the future, and some veteran quarterbacks who can find immediate success. If Eberflus’ tenure has taught us anything, it’s that this team isn’t too far off.

Flores has been the most dominant coordinator outside of Johnson this season, building a Vikings defense from the ground up while the team gave up higher-priced veterans. Flores replaced key players with nondescript players like Andrew Van Ginkel and Blake Cashman. Unlike other Bill Belichick protégés, Flores has managed to emulate the legendary head coach’s true secret: an amoebic defense based on confidence; a group of players taught themselves well enough to think and act on their own. According to those familiar with D.C., he learned a lot from his previous stint as head coach of the Miami Dolphins, and his tenure is worth revisiting given that he coached under extremely unique circumstances. Paired with a strong offensive coordinator, Flores will be one of the top prospects on the market. “When I talk to people about (Morris’) candidacy, I feel the same way about him as I do about Raheem Morris,” Mike Tomlin, who coached with Flores in Pittsburgh a year after Flores left the Dolphins, told me. “I thought Raheem was the best coaching candidate in the world without a head coaching job, and I feel the same way about Flo this cycle.”

In January 2023, Kliff Kingsbury interviewed for the Bears’ offensive coordinator job, but that meeting certainly could have served a dual purpose considering Kingsbury worked closely with Caleb Williams at USC and the Bears were planning to draft the No. 1 quarterback . Williams will be at the center of this decision, and Kingsbury has one of the most prominent relationships with a quarterback in this carousel. Although his tenure with the Arizona Cardinals included just one playoff appearance and no wins, he signed a second contract and fielded a talented staff, including Vance Joseph as defensive coordinator. The staff that worked with Kingsbury in Arizona found him flexible when it came to changing his Air Raid tendencies towards the NFL and combining it with the more McVay-style Rams offense.

Kingsbury played a key role behind the scenes in preparing Jayden Daniels for the big stage. Daniels’ play has been on the decline of late, but the Commanders have had to adjust their play calling to accommodate Daniels’ rib injury.

Slowik was hot at the end of last year and had good interviews with the Commanders and Atlanta Falcons. Although this year’s Texans team continues to navigate some personnel-related challenges, Slowik led C.J. Stroud’s Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign a year ago and has a strong pedigree in the Kyle Shanahan tree. Kyle’s father, Mike, told me about Slowik: “When Kyle got a job in San Francisco, I said: You better call Bobby. He kept Bobby on the defensive side of football for a few years, then moved him to the offensive side. He was the perfect man for Kyle. It was a great situation for everyone.

“Bobby knows football very well,” Shanahan continued. “He is a wonderful person. Very smart. He knows the staff as well as anyone. “He has studied both aspects of football and if you talk to him you can tell how smart he is and how he can handle anything.”

Starting his career in defense gave Slowik many schematic advantages. His closeness to the Shanahan coaches, coaches on Houston’s defensive staff under DeMeco Ryans, and his work with Stroud in 2023 make him a must-interview.

Smith interviewed for the Carolina Panthers’ head coaching position this summer. He stands out because his interpersonal skills are probably the most respected among the coaches on this list. Smith’s ability to make those around him feel comfortable and appreciated has been discussed by many of his former players, and his hybrid background on the offensive line and as a coordinator under Mike McDaniel has only enhanced his candidacy in my opinion.

Even before Brian Callahan left to take the head coaching job with the Tennessee Titans, there were rumors about Pitcher, who has been Joe Burrow’s position coach since Burrow was drafted and is now coordinating an offense that is among the best in the NFL. over the last four weeks. Separating Cincinnati’s offensive performance from defensive personnel issues is important as the organization makes a quarterback-focused decision. Pitcher was a college quarterback at Colgate and SUNY Cortland, had experience coaching a No. 1 pick and, while not familiar with the Bears, had experience navigating a similarly put together roster.

While the Coach of the Year winner has a storied history and should be valued in Cleveland, could the Browns move on from Stefanski for some draft capital? Especially if the team is desperate to do a Hail Mary to resolve the issue with Deshaun Watson? Stefanski’s quarterbacking skills are widely recognized and he has deep knowledge of the division, having spent the majority of his career with the Vikings. This would be a smart move for the Bears and would eliminate some of the guesswork on a critical hire.