Could Chicago Bears have to replace this coach?

When you finish with the first overall pick, your coaching staff is not usually the one that gets purged by other teams. However, a recent report notes that Chicago Bears linebackers coach Dave Borgonzi will be interviewing with the Arizona Cardinals for their defensive coordinator job.

Could David Borgonzi leave the Chicago Bears?

When you take a step back and think about it, it does make a lot of sense. When the Chicago Bears hired Dave Borgonzi, he was the biggest name on the staff. He had worked with Lavonte David, and Kwon Alexander with the Buccaneers, and then had great success with Shaq Leonard, Anthony Walker, and Bobby Okereke.

When the team hired Dave Borgonzi it was expected that he would get defensive coordinator consideration at some point. He has been a rising coach.

The timing may be a bit surprising, but it makes even more sense when you realize that it is Jonathan Gannon with the Arizona Cardinals. Gannon just got the job, but going back, Gannon was on the Indianapolis Colts with Matt Eberflus and Dave Borgonzi from 2018-2021. Gannon was the defensive backs coach while Borgonzi was the linebackers coach.

Building the staff that had these guys is part of why Eberflus was respected as a head coach candidate. Still, now that Gannon has a head coaching job, he has a position for Borgonzi and one that is a promotion from the Chicago Bears spot.

Borgonzi followed Eberflus to Chicago but would be crazy to pass on the Cardinals’ job. Gannon has said he wants to be the CEO type and he will not call plays, so this is a big step for Borgonzi, who does not call plays here.

Of course, this is not a lock to happen, either. Gannon has submitted multiple interview requests and Borgonzi is just one of them. If anything, he is doing a favor to an old friend and getting his name out there as a defensive coordinator. For Borgonzi, it helps to get a DC interview in with someone you know. Even if he does not get the job, both sides have to be happy about the outcome.

So, the Chicago Bears may not lose their linebackers coach yet, but he is probably not going to be here long-term. We will sit and wait to see what the Cardinals decide, but as the Bears’ defense starts to turn around, someone like Borgonzi will be getting more and more of these calls.