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Bears ranked among worst potential head coaching openings

The Bears are gearing up for what’s sure to be a busy offseason, which is expected to include bringing in a new head coach to replace Matt Nagy.

Right now, there are only two coaching vacancies — the Raiders and Jaguars — but that number is expected to change in a couple of weeks. And the Bears will likely be added to the list.

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell doesn’t believe the Bears’ job is one of the more attractive potential coaching destinations. He listed the Vikings, Broncos, Jaguars, Panthers and Raiders all above Chicago. The Texans were the only team that’s deemed a worst landing spot than the Bears.

Barnwell noted that Fields’ potential — and the fact that he’s on a rookie deal — patient ownership and cap space were all positives. But it’s Chicago’s missing draft capital and lack of roster depth that has landed them so far down the list.

I’m excited about Fields’ potential — and a tough schedule has masked a league-average performance by Sean Desai’s defense this season — but there’s still a lot to worry about with this job. Years of trading up in the draft have left the Bears with a thin roster, as Pace’s aptitude in finding useful players in the middle rounds of drafts has been countered by a lack of picks. They will be down their first- and fourth-round selections in 2022, and they feel light-years behind the Packers in the NFC North. Things can move fast if Fields excels in Year 2, but there’s a staggering amount of work to be done to give him a reasonable chance of success.

The expectation for weeks is that Nagy’s time in Chicago is coming to an end following his first losing season in his four years as head coach. But it’s not the fact that it’s his first losing season, as it is it’s the third straight season where the Bears haven’t had a winning record.

And while Barnwell doesn’t believe Chicago is the most attractive destination, the Bears do have some young talent in place — namely Fields — and cap space that should be enticing for coaching candidates.

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