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The Chicago Bears will soon embark on a search for the franchise’s next head coach, and one of their all-time greats has strong thoughts on how that decision should be made.
Olin Kreutz played center in the NFL for 14 years. He spent his first 13 seasons as a member of the Bears, earning trips to six consecutive Pro Bowls between 2001-06. He was also an All-Pro in each of the final two seasons of that stretch, the last of which Chicago made a run to the Super Bowl.
Kreutz has been an outspoken fan of the franchise ever since retiring following the 2011 campaign, and he hasn’t been afraid to publicly criticize the team and its decisions makers or offer advice on how they should approach trying to claw their way back to the top of the sport.
The former Bears lineman held true to form on Tuesday, December 3, when he took to social media with a clear message to team ownership and president Kevin Warren on who should make the call on the franchise’s next head coach.
“Dear Bears brass, get out of the way and let [general manager Ryan] Poles hire the next Bears coach,” Kreutz wrote in an X post. “No ‘collaboration.’ One guy making the decision. The ‘football’ guy. Thank you!”
Kevin Warren, Ryan Poles to Make Joint Call on Bears’ Next Head Coach
GettyChicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles.
Kreutz’s comments came a day after Warren and Poles met with the media to discuss the firing of head coach Matt Eberflus. That decision came down less than 24 hours after Chicago lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving.
It was the Bears’ sixth consecutive loss and one of several that wasn’t cemented until the final seconds, all of which included a late gaffe by the coaching staff.
Warren made clear during the press conference that Poles would remain in the job of GM, but he was also clear that Poles wouldn’t be making the decision on the team’s next head coach on his own.
“When you look at all of these elements as we sit here today, we are in a unique situation,” Warren told media members. “This will be the most coveted job in the National Football League this year, and Ryan and I need to work hand-in-hand together to make sure we bring that to life, not only from a head coach standpoint but from an entire staff standpoint.”
Thomas Brown Will Coach Bears Through End of Season
GettyChicago Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown.
Former offensive coordinator Thomas Brown is now the interim head coach for the Bears and will presumably hold that position through the end of this season.
Brown began the year as the pass game coordinator, making his rise to the top job in a matter of weeks more than meteoric. He has the respect of the players and has developed a good rapport with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, according to every report that has come out of the Bears locker room since Eberflus departed.
Brown will continue to call the plays in his new capacity and will likely get a hard look from Poles and Warren for the permanent job should he excel down the final five games of the season. Unfortunately for Brown and the Bears, those games will come against the San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings, Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers in that order — with three of them played away from Soldier Field.
The combined record of Chicago’s last five opponents is 42-18, making it easily the toughest remaining slate in the NFL.
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Bears All-Time Great Sends Strong Message to Brass on New Head Coach Hire