Bears announce new coaching staff under Ben Johnson, here's which coaches got retained and who got replaced
The Chicago Bears have finalized the coaching staff for the 2025 season led by new first-time head coach Ben Johnson.The new staff in Chicago is a fresh blend of experienced veterans and young up-in-coming minds, along with a few former NFL players.Here's the layout of what the new staff will look like including all of […]
The Chicago Bears have finalized the coaching staff for the 2025 season led by new first-time head coach Ben Johnson.
The new staff in Chicago is a fresh blend of experienced veterans and young up-in-coming minds, along with a few former NFL players.
Here's the layout of what the new staff will look like including all of the new guys that were hired and which coaches they are going to replace.
The Big 4
| Role | New Coach | Previous Coach |
|---|---|---|
Head Coach | Ben Johnson | Matt Eberflus / Thomas Brown |
Offensive Coordinator | Declan Doyle | Shane Waldron / Thomas Brown / Chris Beatty |
Defensive Coordinator | Dennis Allen | Eric Washington |
Special Teams Coordinator | Richard Hightower |
Johnson enters into the head coach position for the first time in his career after previously serving as the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator from 2022-2024. In Detroit, Johnson led a Top-5 scoring and total offense in each of the last three seasons, including the league's top scoring unit in 2024.
Doyle gets his first opportunity at a coordinator title and becomes the youngest NFL offensive coordinator at 28-years-old. He has been a fast rising name working under Sean Payton and previously served as the Denver Broncos tight ends coach in 2024.
Allen is one of the most experienced coaches on the staff after spending eight seasons as a defensive coordinator and six seasons as a head coach. Allen previously served as the New Orleans Saints' head coach from 2022-2024. In his decade with the Saints, Allen's defense ranked Top-5 in scoring in five different seasons.
Hightower will return for his fourth season as the Bears' special teams coordinator. Hightower's unit in 2024 ranked 5th in the league in DVOA while having three separate players earn Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
"As we embark on the next phase of our operation, I am thrilled to welcome Dennis and Declan to the Bears, and I am excited that Richard will continue to lead our special teams corps," Ben Johnson said.
Offensive Assistants
| Role | New Coach | Previous Coach |
|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks Coach | J.T. Barrett | Kerry Joesph |
Passing Game Coordinator | Press Taylor | Thomas Brown |
Running Backs Coach | Eric Bieniemy | Chad Morton |
Wide Receivers Coach | Antwaan Randle-El | Chris Beatty |
Tight Ends Coach | Jim Dray | |
Offensive Line Coach | Dan Roushar | Chris Morgan |
Barrett joins the staff leading the quarterbacks room after previously working with the Lions as an assistant quarterbacks coach. In 2024, Lions quarterback Jared Goff was an MVP finalist after leading the NFL with 4,942 passing yards. Barrett spent two seasons as a quarterback in the NFL after going undrafted in 2018 out of Ohio State.
Taylor will aid in game planning the passing attack for the Bears after previously serving as the Jacksonville Jaguars' offensive coordinator from 2022-2024. In 2023, the Jaguars ranked 9th in passing yards per game. Taylor is also the brother of Cincinnati Bengals' head coach Zac Taylor.
Bieniemy will lead the backfield for the Bears returning to a familiar role after spending a decade in the NFL as a running backs coach with two different teams. Bieniemy most notably served as the Kansas City Chiefs' offensive coordinator from 2018-2022.
Randle-El will also reunite with Johnson in Chicago after working together in Detroit. With the Bears, Randle-El got a nice title change becoming Johnson's assistant head coach along with being the wide receivers coach. Randle-El spent nine seasons in the NFL as a wide receiver himself and even won a Super Bowl in Pittsburgh.
Dray will be one of the few returning offensive assistants and will continue working with the tight end position. Dray joined the Bears in 2022 and has built a strong connection with tight end Cole Kmet. He's also a former NFL tight end who played eight seasons with four different franchises.
Roushar will return to the NFL ranks after serving as the offensive line coach at Tulane over the past two seasons. Roushar built his strong reputation in New Orleans working with the offensive front, tight ends, and running backs under Sean Payton.
Defensive Assistants
| Role | New Coach | Previous Coach |
|---|---|---|
Defensive Backs Coach | Al Harris | Jon Hoke / Andre Curtis |
Linebackers Coach | Richard Smith | Dave Borgonzi |
Defensive Line Coach | Jeremy Garrett | Travis Smith |
Nickelback Coach | Cannon Matthews | David Overstreet II |
Safeties Coach | Matt Giordano | Andre Curtis |
Senior Defensive Assistant | Bill Johnson |
Harris will join the Bears' defense after serving as the defensive backs coach with the Dallas Cowboys from 2020-2023 and was given the defensive passing game coordinator title in 2024. Harris played 14 years in the NFL and was named to two Pro Bowls in his career.
Smith is a seasoned veteran in the coaching ranks who has worked with 12 different teams throughout his career. Smith will reunite with Allen after the two worked together in 2011 with the Denver Broncos. He also previously served as the defensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins, Houston Texans and Atlanta Falcons.
Garrett previously held the same position with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2024 before joining the Bears. His best work came with the Cleveland Browns in 2020, he was the defensive line coach that season when Myles Garrett and Olivier Vernon each recorded 9.0+ sacks. He also served as Liberty's DL coach in 2022, the year the program ranked first in tackles for loss (109) and third in sacks (41).
Matthews will reunite with Harris to help lead the secondary. Matthews was with Harris in Dallas from 2020-2023 as assistant defensive backs coach and safeties coach.
Giordano will work with the safeties in the secondary and will reunite with Allen. He previously spent the last two seasons as a defensive assistant with the Saints.
Johnson is a veteran coach making his way back into the NFL and also has previous ties with the Saints. Johnson and Allen overlapped for two seasons in New Orleans under Sean Payton. Johnson has been a part of two Super Bowl appearances, a National Championship, and a USFL Championship in his coaching career.
Positional Assistants / Quality Control
| Role | New Coach | Previous Coach |
|---|---|---|
Assistant QBs / WRs Coach | Robbie Picazo | |
Assistant Offensive Line Coach | Kyle DeVan | Jason Houghtaling |
Assistant Linebackers Coach | Kevin Koch | |
Assistant Special Teams Coordinator | Anthony Blevins | Carlos Polk |
Offensive Quality Control | Matt Aponte | |
Offensive Quality Control | Zach Cable | |
Defensive Quality Control | Kenny Norton III |
Picazo will enter his second season with the Bears. Prior to joining Chicago, he was an offensive assistant with the Seattle Seahawks and Houston Texans.
DeVan will team back up with Roushar to help coach the offensive line in Chicago. DeVan was Roushar's assistant OL coach in 2015 before moving to the college level. He also spent four seasons in the NFL as a guard and center for three different teams.
Koch will be entering his fourth season with the Bears and will have a new role in 2025. He's been an assistant for three seasons in Chicago, including the previous two as a quality control coach.
There will be one change for the special teams. Blevins will serve as Hightower's new assistant ST coordinator. He previously served as a ST assistant with the Giants and Cardinals. He was also a defensive assistant for the Birmingham Stallions in 2024.
Aponte will assist with the quarterback position after working at the University of San Diego since 2021. At San Diego, Aponte worked his way up from tight ends coach, to quarterbacks coach, to offensive coordinator. He also previously spent six seasons at the University of Iowa as an undergraduate assistant from 2014-2016, Aponte overlapped with Doyle at Iowa in 2016 when Doyle was an offensive student assistant.
Cable and Norton will all be retained as quality control coaches. Cable will enter his third season with the team, and Norton will be entering his second season in this role.
Chicago Bears could potentially open the 2025 season with the toughest challenge out of any team in the entire league
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