What we know about the front office, coaching staff Bears are building
The Bears have their new Matt and Ryan.
The team made it official Thursday night hiring head coach Matt Eberflus to replace Matt Nagy. The move came only days after new GM Ryan Poles replaced Ryan Pace.
Eberflus showed up to work on Friday ready to assemble a new staff. It takes a village to run an NFL team. The GM and the head coach are the most important positions, but they will need help along the way.
That includes a dozen assistant coaches, none more important than the offensive and defensive coordinators. The offensive coordinator position will be vital for Eberflus, whose background is entirely on the defensive side of the ball. The Bears need an offensive coordinator who can help quarterback Justin Fields flourish in the coming years.
Below is what is known so far about the interests at each position, and who might be interviewing for the job.
Offense
Eberflus will interview Packers quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator Luke Getsy, according to Sports Illustrated. The 37-year-old coach has been with the Packers since 2019, working closely with Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love.
Getsy worked his way up from offensive quality control coach (2014-15) to wide receivers coach (2016-17) before leaving in 2018 to become the offensive coordinator at Mississippi State. Getsy's absence lasted only one year. When Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen left for Florida, Getsy found his way back to Green Bay.
Getsy interviewed for the Broncos head coach position earlier this month.
Texans passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton is interviewing for the Bears' offensive coordinator position, according to multiple reports.
Hamilton was Justin Herbert's QB coach with the Chargers in 2020 and then helped Houston rookie Davis Mills last season. Hamilton was Bears quarterback coach from 2007-09 under Lovie Smith. Since then, he's coached under Jim Harbaugh at Stanford and was Chuck Pagano's offensive coordinator in Indianapolis from 2013-15.
Eagles passing game coordinator Kevin Patullo is a name to watch, according to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Patullo worked with Eberflus in Indianapolis for three seasons as the wide receivers coach (2018-19) and pass game specialist (2020), before moving to Philadelphia with Nick Sirianni. He was previously a quarterback coach with the Jets (2015-16).
Defense
Colts linebackers coach Dave Borgonzi is likely to join Eberflus, according to a report from ESPN. He's worked closely with All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard. he's coached in the NFL since 2011.
Former Bears defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli worked with Eberflus several years in Dallas. Marinelli was the Bears' defensive coordinator from 2010-12, and took the same position with the Cowboys from 2014-19. Eberflus was the Cowboys linebackers coach from 2011-17. Marinelli is currently the Raiders' defensive line coach.
Special teams
Chris Tabor, who was special teams coordinator since 2018, is taking the same position with Carolina.
Eberflus worked with longtime special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia for five years in Dallas (2013-17). Bisaccia took the same position with the Raiders in 2018. The Raiders elevated him to interim head coach last season when they fired Jon Gruden. Bisaccia has been an NFL special teams coordinator since 2002.
Raiders players have vouched for Bisaccia to become the head coach after leading the team to the playoffs, but the Raiders reportedly have a strong interest in Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels for the job.
Front office
Poles has requested permission to speak with Eagles director of player personnel Ian Cunningham for a front-office position, according to the NFL Network.
Cunningham has 14 years of NFL front office experience, the last five with the Eagles. In his current role, which he held for one season, he oversees the college scouting department and helps with pro scouting. Prior to the Eagles, he spent nine years in the Ravens' scouting department.