Tier 4
8. Drew Petzing
Many Chicago Bears fans won't know who Drew Petzing is because he is only 37 years old and just now getting his first crack at being an offensive coordinator. Kevin Warren has a connection to Petzing during his time with the Minnesota Vikings. I'm not sure how much interaction the two had as Petzing was an assistant wide receiver coach for most of their time together. He was promoted as high as wide receivers coach before leaving for Cleveland. He was also an assistant QB coach for a season while both Warren and he were in Minnesota.
We have seen two different situations for Petzing. Last year, the Cardinals barely had Kyler Murray and the offense struggled. This year, they were 12th in scoring and 11th in total yards. I do not think that Petzing is ready to be a head coach, though, and shouldn't truly be considered by the Bears.
7. Joe Brady
When I started putting this list together, Brady was not a verified candidate for the Bears. However, in my mind, I had him as one of my favorites. Turns out as I was going through each candidate, I kept moving Brady down the board. Proven head coaches had to be higher, and it's hard to give Brady too much credit for what Buffalo is doing seeing they seem to do it every year no matter who is calling the plays. When former OCs go elsewhere as head coaches though, they don't seem to succeed. I'm worried we will see the same thing here with Brady.
Brady did have success in New Orleans as an offensive assistant coach, but that job doesn't scream importance in the grand scheme of things. He quickly jumped to being an offensive coordinator in Carolina, and things went poorly. I'm also concerned that he only has seven years of coaching experience in the NFL. Brady wouldn't ruin my day if he's hired, but I'd prefer others over him.
6. Pete Carroll
The most recent name added to the list of potential candidates is Pete Carroll. Carroll has been coaching football for 30 years. He's one of the oldest candidates the Chicago Bears are looking to interview, but he's also one of the most established. Outside of his assistant coaching positions in the NFL, he was also the head coach of the Jets for a season and had a brief three-year stint as the head coach of the Patriots before making for Bill Belichick and heading off to coach the USC Trojans. Carroll coached USC for nine seasons before returning to the NFL with the Seahawks.
Carroll was the head coach of the Seahawks from 2010 to 2023. He took the Seahawks to the Super Bowl twice, winning once and losing the other time. Carroll is definitely the type of coach to turn this organization into a contender, but I worry that he's no longer a perennial playoff coach who will push for consistent Super Bowls.
5. Thomas Brown
Whoa! I know what you are thinking. How can I have Thomas Brown so high on this list? Well, he's definitely in this tier and even though he could be lower, Brown was given a raw deal. He didn't do enough to wow me into pounding the table for him as the next head coach of the Bears. However, I think he'd do much better if he built his own staff and did things the way he wanted. He already said the offense would look much different if he was given the job. I believe him. He had to work with Shane Waldron's playbook. I know he helped install plays but it's just not the same.
I love Brown's background working with Sean McVay. He might not be ready to be a head coach, but I think he's more talented than Bears fans give him credit. He won't be the Chicago Bears next head coach, but I like him enough to rank him this high and I hope to see him get an opportunity again soon.