After a six-game losing skid that culminated in a clock mismanagement fiasco and loss to the Lions, the Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus in late November.
His tenure was ripe with change, as he fired eight coaches in his less than three seasons at the helm, including both offensive and defensive coordinators.
He left his only head coaching opportunity with a 14-32 mark, and with a 7-10 mark in 2023 his best season on paper.
Thomas Brown, who had taken over as interim offensive coordinator following the dismissal of Shane Waldron before Week 11 this past fall, was elevated for a second time in-season, this time to serve as interim head coach.
With a talented rookie quarterback at the helm in Caleb Williams, early signs pointed to Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as the favorite for the job.
When it was all said and done, after fending off a later push from Raiders minority owner Tom Brady and Las Vegas, the Bears were able to get their guy.
So, after the loss to the Lions ironically ended the Eberflus experiment, the Bears went in-division and got the hottest name on the coaching market in Johnson, who has had plenty of time to think about who will be filling out his staff.
INTERVIEWED: 17 CANDIDATES
Joe Bradwy (Bills OC)
Thomas Brown (Bears interim HC)
Pete Carroll (former Seahawks HC)
Brian Flores (Vikings DC)
Eddie George (Tennessee State HC)
Aaron Glenn (Lions DC)
Ben Johnson (Lions OC) *HIRED*
Mike Kafka (Giants OC)
Mike McCarthy (former Cowboys HC)
Todd Monken (Ravens OC)
Drew Petzing (Cardinals OC)
Ron Rivera (former Commanders HC)
David Shaw (Broncos senior personnel executive)
Arthur Smith (Steelers OC)
Adam Stenavich (Packers OC)
Mike Vrabel (former Titans HC)
Anthony Weaver (Dolphins DC)
REPORTED REQUESTED INTERVIEWS:
Matt Campbell (Iowa State HC)
Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame HC)
Kliff Kingsbury (Commanders OC)
OFFENSE
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR:
Declan Doyle (Broncos TEs)
INTERVIEWS / REQUESTS:
Bo Hardegree (Titans QBs)
Declan Doyle (Broncos TEs)
QUARTERBACKS
JT Barrett (Lions assistant QBs)
RUNNING BACKS
Eric Bieniemy (UCLA AHC / OC)
WIDE RECEIVERS / ASSISTANT HC
Antwan Randle El (Lions WRs)
OFFENSIVE LINE
TBD (previous stop)
TIGHT ENDS
TBD (previous stop)
PASS GAME COORDINATOR
Press Taylor (Jaguars OC)
DEFENSE
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
TBD (previous stop)
INTERVIEW REQUESTS:
LINEBACKERS
Robert Smith (Colts LBs)
DEFENSIVE LINE
Jeremy Garrett (Jaguars DL)
SECONDARY
TBD (previous stop)
SPECIAL TEAMS
SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR:
TBD (previous stop)
SUPPORT STAFF