LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — Bears president Kevin Warren is proudly a resident of Chicago and speaks often of his admiration for the city. In leading its football franchise, he now needs to consider the famous words of renowned architect Daniel Burnham, whose name Warren has invoked before.
Make no little plans.
That much is already on Warren’s mind as he looks toward the Bears’ future. He believes there's a world-class stadium to be built along Chicago's lakefront and that championship parades will be held in the city's streets. It all sounds so promising, but Warren still needs to hold up his end of the deal.
Twenty-three months since Warren was introduced as the Bears’ president/CEO, little has changed about the way the franchise operates. Warren hasn’t overhauled Halas Hall enough to make a difference. That much has been clear in another lost season for the Bears, who are 4-8 and riding a six-game losing streak.
Warren and third-year general manager Ryan Poles could’ve spearheaded a coaching change back in January, but they instead retained Matt Eberflus for a third season, one that has gone so poorly that the Bears did something they'd never done before – they fired a head coach during the season.
Eberflus was 14-32 with the Bears, including 5-19 in one-score games. His tenure will be remembered as one of the worst in Bears history, and this season will be recalled as one of the franchise’s most disappointing and dysfunctional.
With Eberflus having taken the fall in getting fired last Friday, Warren and Poles must now take their share of blame. Most significantly, they have to find the right solution in hiring the Bears' next head coach.
“This will be the most coveted job in the National Football League this year,” Warren said during a press conference Monday at Halas Hall.
To prove that's true, Warren and Poles need to make a bold hire that matches the Bears’ promise.
Rookie Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, appears to be the type of budding franchise quarterback whom Chicago has never seen before. The 23-year-old Williams has thrown for 2,612 yards, 14 touchdowns and five interceptions in 12 games this season. He's on pace for 3,700 passing yards, which would be the third-most in a single season by a Bears quarterback.
Williams has enjoyed his individual success despite the utter chaos around him. He has been everything the Bears hoped for in a young quarterback. What he needs now is the right head coach.
In Williams, the Bears have their most important piece to attract coaching candidates. He's also on his rookie contract, which gives Poles salary cap flexibility in building out the roster over the next couple years. The Bears are a team that should be on the rise. A great coach can lead that ascension.
But what awaits can't be another typical Bears coaching hire if the organization is to take the next step forward.
Back in 2013, the Bears passed on Andy Reid and Bruce Arians to hire Marc Trestman as their new head coach. The team even made Arians conduct a mock press conference, an insulting act for the reigning NFL Coach of the Year. Two years later in 2015, the Bears tried to right the Trestman wrong by hiring a retread candidate in John Fox, whose best coaching days were behind him.
Fox wasn’t a fit for the Bears’ rebuilding plan. Three years later in 2018, Matt Nagy was tabbed as the new head coach. Chicago broke through by winning the NFC North that season – with Nagy earning NFL Coach of the Year honors – but regression followed in the ensuing three years.
In 2022, the Bears brought in the defensive-oriented Eberflus as head coach. They passed on the likes of Kevin O’Connell (Vikings) and Mike McDaniel (Dolphins), two well-regarded offensive-minded coaches.
Future Hall of Fame head coach Sean Payton may have been available for the Bears in 2022 after announcing his retirement from the Saints, but they didn't pursue him. Payton returned to coaching one year later and has turned around the Broncos in short order.
This past January, then-Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh was preparing to re-enter the NFL coaching ranks. While Eberflus was under contract, Harbaugh was an option the Bears could’ve — and damn well should’ve — pursued.
“He’s the coach at Michigan,” Poles said in January when asked of the Bears’ interest in Harbaugh.
That didn't stop a pursuit by the Chargers, who are currently 8-4 in Harbaugh's first season in Los Angeles. Where would the Bears be right now if they hired Harbaugh back in January?
For all Warren's rhetoric, there has to be ambition and action to match.
In this hiring cycle, the Bears should pull out all the stops to land a top candidate like Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson or Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady. If a college head coach like Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman, USC's Lincoln Riley or Texas' Steve Sarkisian is worthy of the job, the McCaskey ownership group should extend the financial offer it takes to make it happen. If a future Hall of Fame coach like Bill Belichick or Pete Carroll presents the right plan and is viewed as the best fit, he shouldn't be allowed to leave Halas Hall.
Once January arrives and the Bears' coaching search begins in earnest, they can leave no stone unturned. If there’s a surprising candidate who becomes available – a divorce between Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers? – the leaders at Halas Hall must act accordingly.
No longer can the Bears operate with the same faulty, frugal approach of the past. It’s unacceptable to act like a Ma-and-Pa Shop standing alongside their powerful NFL peers. This is a franchise that has stated a desire to embark on a bold new direction under Warren's guidance. Thus far, nothing has truly changed in Chicago.
It’s time for the Bears prove their championship intentions by hiring a winning head coach. As this coaching search begins, they must make no little plans.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.