Bears begin offensive coordinator search after Ravens hire Declan Doyle to same position
One year into his tenure, Bears coach Ben Johnson needs to find a new offensive coordinator. That’s hardly a crisis given that Johnson crafted the offense and is the play caller, but it’s a critical position nonetheless.
The Ravens hired Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle to the same position Friday, a move that allows Doyle to be their play caller under defensive-minded head coach Jesse Minter. Doyle, 29, has never had that opportunity and now gets the chance to coach two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson.
He has been regarded as a rising star among offensive coaches and also interviewed with the Eagles this offseason before withdrawing his candidacy.
Johnson has good in-house options to replace Doyle, including quarterback coach J.T. Barrett and passing-game coordinator Press Taylor. Barrett got his start with the Lions in 2022 and has spent his entire coaching career working with Johnson. Taylor has been an NFL assistant since 2013 and was the Jaguars’ offensive coordinator from 2022 through ’24.
Johnson also could go outside the box, as he did in hiring Doyle last year. At that point, Doyle had just two seasons at the position-coach level — coaching tight ends for the Broncos under Sean Payton — and became the youngest coordinator in the league at 28.
In the Bears’ coaching structure for quarterback Caleb Williams over the past year, Johnson was the most hands-on. Outside of his direct coaching, Johnson put Barrett in charge of the day-to-day, while Taylor and Doyle had ancillary roles.
Everything clicked. Williams improved throughout the season and put up a monster game to beat the Packers in the playoffs. The Bears ranked sixth in total offense and ninth in scoring this season after sitting 32nd and 28th in those categories, respectively, last season.
With success, though, comes advancement — a problem that didn’t affect the Bears the last several seasons. Johnson said last week he had “a five-star staff” and it was “no surprise” that other teams would try to pry his assistants away.
“I see future head coaches on this staff; I see future coordinators,” he said. “I see that across the board. When you win games, normally that's what happens... and I'm all for it. I want these guys to continue to ascend.”
While the Bears expect to retain defensive coordinator Dennis Allen and special teams coordinator Richard Hightower, Doyle’s exit is the third significant departure from the organization over the past two weeks.
Running backs coach Eric Bieniemy returned to the Chiefs as their offensive coordinator, replacing former Bears coach Matt Nagy, and assistant general manager Ian Cunningham took a promotion as Falcons general manager Thursday.