We have seen this movie on repeat for decades. The Chicago Bears never seem to get things right when it comes to the coaching staff. They also seem to fail at hiring the right general managers. I thought Ryan Poles was fixing things, but he continues to stand by a head coach who is struggling. We are also seeing an offensive coordinator struggle to call plays appropriately. This could lead to a change sooner rather than later.
The Chicago Bears have been leaning on their defense forever. This was the year we were supposed to see the offense come alive and finally match the defense. That has not happened and we are once again seeing a quarterback ruined by incompetent coaching and playcalling.
Shane Waldron deserves to be fired. I was shocked that we didn't get the news on Monday after the awful 19-3 loss to the Patriots. At the time, the Patriots were 2-7 and the worst team in the NFL. Despite the Bears having one more win than the Patriots now, we might need to argue that the Bears are actually the worst team in the NFL. It is time for a change and if Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears are not willing to fire Matt Eberflus because of a dumb want to have never fired a coach mid-season, then they need to at least move on from Waldron.
The Chicago Bears must at least fire Shane Waldron
Obviously, Waldron would be the scapegoat in this scenario. His firing is warranted though. His scheme is not timed well. It's rare to see multiple receivers at the top of their routes as Caleb Williams is settling into his dropback and ready to throw. When there is a heavy blitz, Waldron never seems to dial up max protection with a hot route. Then, of course, there are times when Williams holds the ball too long trying to find the perfect target. Waldron does not even know when to use play action correctly. My 12-year-old could call a better game thanks to Madden.
If the Bears were intelligent and moved on from Waldron, these three could be the best options to call plays going forward.
Thomas Brown - Offensive Passing Game Coordinator
The most logical option to take over playcalling if the Chicago Bears move on from Shane Waldron is Thomas Brown. Brown is currently the Offensive Passing Game Coordinator. He is the only other coach who has offensive play-calling experience. Unfortunately, the play-calling experience came in 2023 with the Carolina Panthers.
While calling plays in Carolina last year, the Panthers were 29th in EPA per play and 29th in success rate. Are we sure we want to see Brown call plays? Then you have to add in the fact that he's currently overseeing the passing game -- the one part of the offense that seems the most broken. The good news is that Brown was the RB and assistant head coach in Los Angeles with the Rams. He was there when the Rams won the Super Bowl in 2021.
However, is Brown the guy who oversees the WR route concepts? How much of that is managed by Waldron? If Brown is the main source and Waldron gives him flexibility without oversight, then please do not give Brown the reigns. Too often we see guys out of position or running routes that literally make no sense based on the timing of the dropback.
Caleb Williams needs help from his coach and I don't know if the former coordinator of the worst team in the NFL last season makes the most sense. His time in Los Angeles with Sean McVay could help and the Panthers did not have much talent. However, Waldron coached with McVay in Los Angeles as well, and look where that's gotten us. Maybe it's time to give playcalling to a guy who has never done it before.
Kerry Joseph - Quarterbacks Coach
Another option for Matt Eberflus and the Chicago Bears to consider is promoting Kerry Joseph. Joseph is the quarterbacks coach. He came here with Waldron from Seattle. While in Seattle, he was able to help Shane Waldron mold veteran quarterback Geno Smith. Smith has revitalized his career a bit with the Seahawks, but he hasn't been consistently great.
Joseph doesn't seem as clear of an answer as Thomas Brown. I fear that Waldron will have influenced Joseph too much, and the offense will look too similar to what we are already seeing. He does not have any play-calling experience but maybe he can harness what he learned as a player. Joseph spent six years in the NFL -- mostly as a safety -- and then moved onto the CFL where he played quarterback for another 13 years.
Can Joseph prove he isn't a mini-me version of Waldron? As bad as Waldron has been, it cannot get any worse, right? This is the only argument for giving play-calling duties to Kerry Joseph over Waldron.
Chris Beatty - Wide Receivers Coach
Want to shake things up a bit? Want to put a guy in a position who has seen an elite passing game work despite not coming from the Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVay coaching tree? Want to have a play-caller who doesn't have any connection to Shane Waldron?
Why not let Chris Beatty have an opportunity to call plays? He also has not done it before at the NFL level. He is not very seasoned as an NFL coach either. That said, I am too concerned about a current passing game coordinator taking over a passing game that isn't working. I am too concerned about a quarterbacks coach who has been mentored by the current play-caller.
Beatty has three years of NFL coaching experience and 15 years at the collegiate level. During his three years with the Chargers, the WR group led the AFC in receptions and was second in receiving yards. Keenan Allen excelled under Beatty's guidance and had a career year in receptions in 2023. Allen was also fourth overall in yards per game last season.
Chris Beatty was a co-offensive coordinator at the collegiate level while coaching at Maryland. He even coached DJ Moore during that time. With Beatty's connection to Moore and Allen, he could be the sneaky option for this Chicago Bears team that is failing fast.
The only problem is that the link between Justin Fields, Luke Getsy, Caleb Williams, and Caleb Williams is Matt Eberflus. I'm not sure it will matter who is calling the plays as long as Eberflus doesn't allow the play-caller to feel free to do their job. Limiting turnovers is one thing, but you need to play to win the game, not play to not lose it. Eberflus' conservatism could ruin another quarterback and reset this franchise backward for another 5+ years. Eberflus said there will be changes, but what changes will those be if he's still in charge?