Bears lose Tabor to Browns
Bears coach Lovie Smith realized that he might lose some of his assistant coaches in the off-season based on the team's success — and he was right.
The Cleveland Browns announced Tuesday afternoon that they had signed Bears assistant special-teams coach Chris Tabor as their special-teams coordinator.
“I think when you have a successful year, (when) you do some good things, people look at your staff,” Smith said Monday. “I wouldn't be surprised. I'm hoping that we'll be able to keep our same staff in place, but it seems like that never happens.”
Tabor, 39, spent the past three seasons as the assistant to Bears special-teams coordinator Dave Toub, whose units have been among the NFL's best in each of his seven seasons with the team.
“I believe that Chris is one of the up-and-coming special-teams coaches in this league,” said Browns head coach Pat Shurmur, who was recently hired to replace Eric Mangini. “He is smart, enthusiastic and has a true passion for this area of the game. In Chris' three years with the Bears, they consistently boasted one of the best special-teams groups in the league, in just about every facet. Having faced them in 2008 and 2009, I know what a challenge it was to go up against their unit. He will be a valuable addition to our coaching staff.”
As much as Smith would have liked to keep his staff intact, he has always supported assistants who had opportunities for advancement. The Bears granted the Browns permission to interview Tabor, and Toub supported his assistant's move.
“I'm very happy for Chris,” Toub told the Browns' website. “We all are in the Bears organization. I'm very proud of him. He's a great coach. We're all going to miss him. The coaches, players and staff loved him here. Cleveland's players are going to really like him and respond well to him. He brings a lot to the Browns' organization.”