Football fans are feeling a mix of emotions right now. The Super Bowl matchup is set, and it's a rematch from two years ago between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. Maybe you're happy about that, maybe you're not, but either way, football's biggest game is always a time to celebrate.
Watching the Super Bowl is bittersweet, as it also means that the football season (at least the part played on the field) is coming to an end. Not everyone follows free agency, the draft and minicamps, so for many fans, football is going away for a while after someone from the winning team says that they're going to Disneyland.
Fans of the Chicago Bears, for the most part, don't seem ready to take a break. The recent hire of Ben Johnson to be the team's next head coach has reinvigorated a fanbase that, for most of the season, was sliding deeper and deeper into depression. Things are finally looking up for the Bears, and although we've said that before, this time we really mean it.
As the offseason is set to begin in earnest, there's a lot of Bears news to keep track of. From Ben Johnson rounding out his staff to former Bears coaches landing in new places, we've got everything that Bears fans need to know.
Meet the new coaching staff
While fans were understandably shocked and thrilled by the hiring of Ben Johnson, it wasn't known at the time who he planned to hire on his staff. One week later, the pieces have fallen into place.
Bears fans have to be excited by what Johnson has pulled off here. At defensive coordinator, he hired Dennis Allen, most recently the head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Allen hasn't done much in his two stints as a head coach, but he's a respected defensive mind that gives this staff some necessary experience.
That experience is a counterbalance to offensive coordinator, where the Bears have brought in Declan Doyle. The 28-year-old is the youngest offensive coordinator in NFL history and a rising star in the league. He served on the Saints with Allen from 2019-22 as an offensive assistant, and he's coming off two years as tight ends coach for the Broncos.
With Johnson confirming that he'll be calling his own plays, Doyle won't have the same level of responsibility as some other coordinators, but given that everyone in Denver seems to have loved working with him, he should be a tremendous addition to the staff.
Johnson kept it status quo on special teams, retaining Richard Hightower as special teams coordinator. Hightower has been with the Bears for the past three seasons and should bring an important level of continuity to what otherwise looks like a brand-new group of coaches.
One other exciting hire that bears mentioning is Antwaan Randle-El. He'll be the receivers coach and assistant head coach. Fans of a certain age will know Randle-El from his time as a multi-talented receiver in the league, and most recently he spent four years as receivers coach for the Lions. His presence will give Johnson a familiar face to lean on, as well as someone who has Super Bowl experience (he won a ring with the Steelers in 2006).
Matt Eberflus and Thomas Brown land on their feet
It's not officially confirmed yet, but former Bears head coach Matt Eberflus is expected to become the next defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys. Eberflus was the team's linebackers coach under Jason Garrett for four years, and this would return him to the role he had before coming to the Bears, as he was the defensive coordinator of the Indianapolis Colts from 2018-21.
The 2025-26 schedules won't be released until the spring, but we already know that the Cowboys will visit the Bears sometime next season. It'll be interesting to see what kind of homecoming he receives.
In other news, Thomas Brown, who took over as interim coach once Eberflus was fired after Thanksgiving, was hired on Monday to be the tight ends coach and passing game coordinator of the New England Patriots. Brown got to work with No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams this past year, and now he'll get the chance to work closely with Drake Maye, who was taken two picks later in the 2024 draft.
Former Bears in the Super Bowl
Unless I'm missing something, the only former Bear that will be playing in the Super Bowl is fullback Khari Blasengame. He'll be clearing holes for Saquon Barkley to run through as the former Giant attempts to cap off one of the best ever seasons by a running back.
Just because there aren't many former Bears that will be stepping onto the field doesn't mean that there isn't a healthy dose of Bears-related intrigue to the game. This game could well come down to what Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense are able to do against the Eagles' league-leading defense. Kansas City's offensive coordintor is former Bears head coach Matt Nagy, and he'll be going against Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, who worked under Nagy as his DC in Chicago in the 2018-19 season.
Fangio was actually Chicago's defensive coordinator for three years before Nagy arrived, and he stayed on in Nagy's first year before leaving to become the head coach of the Denver Broncos. Their one season together was a good one though, as it resulted in the only Bears NFC North title since the 2010-11 season.
Other Super Bowl pieces of interest for Bears fans include keeping an eye on Chiefs guard Trey Smith, who could be Ryan Poles' top priority in free agency, and watching Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter, who the team acquired after a draft-day trade with the Bears in 2023 that sent Darnell Wright to Chicago.