The Chicago Bears have been busy in recent days both interviewing head coaching candidates and also narrowing down the field.
Chicago held its most recent meeting with Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, which the team confirmed in a statement via social media on Saturday, Jan. 18.
“We have completed an interview with head coach candidate Brian Flores,” the team wrote on X.
Flores is one of the Bears’ final interviews, as he spent all of last week preparing for the Vikings’ Super Wild Card Weekend matchup with the Los Angeles Rams. He also interviewed with the New York Jets for their open position on Friday.
Brian Flores Has Best Chance to Take Bears Job From Ben Johnson, Mike McCarthy
GettyMinnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
The Bears previously conducted high-profile interviews with a couple of candidates in Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and former Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, who came into the weekend as frontrunners for the position.
However, Flores is perhaps the one candidate remaining who might be able to fight his way to the top of Chicago’s wishlist.
“It’s been made clear to me that for all intentions and purposes the Chicago job … it is a two-horse race between Mike McCarthy and Ben Johnson,” Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report told Colin Cowherd of Fox Sports Thursday. “I think if Brian Flores goes in and wows them, then he is still in that mix. But right now, I think McCarthy and I think Ben Johnson are the two leading candidates for Chicago.”
Caleb Williams’ Development Biggest Potential Hurdle to Bears Hiring Brian Flores
GettyChicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams.
Flores has head coaching experience after leading the Miami Dolphins for three years from 2019-21.
However, there are a couple of issues with his potential candidacy, both in a general sense and specifically where the Bears are concerned. Dan Graziano of ESPN laid out the circumstances on January 14.
“[Flores’] is the name that comes up the most when I ask people around the NFL to make a prediction,” Graziano wrote. “There are hurdles for Flores — who appears to be a strong candidate for the Jets job, as well — to clear before any team can hire him. That’s especially true in Chicago.”
One potential obstacle is Flores’ ongoing class action lawsuit against the league and multiple of its member franchises for discriminatory employment practices, which he filed after Miami dismissed him three years ago.
The second problem is Flores’ history with Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa who came out publicly during the summer with highly critical commentary about his former head coach, at one point referring to Flores as a “terrible person.”
Flores addressed those comments immediately and perhaps as effectively as possible in the moment, speaking about growth as a person and a coach and wishing Tagovailoa well.
However, Flores’ interpersonal issues with Tagovailoa as well as the quarterback’s development concerns while playing under Flores (Tagovailoa went on to lead the NFL in passing in 2023) raise questions about how well the Vikings DC might fit with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams in Chicago during his formative years.
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