What must Thomas Brown do to become the Bears’ full-time head coach?

What a month it’s been for Thomas Brown. Initially hired as the Chicago Bears’ passing game coordinator during the offseason, he was elevated to interim offensive coordinator following the historic dismissal of Shane Waldron. Three weeks later, he was promoted to Bears interim head coach after Matt Eberflus was fired, the first time in the franchise’s 104-year history that the head coach has been fired midseason.

Almost by default, he will be a leading candidate for the full-time job this offseason, but the competition will be fierce. There are currently three head coaching opportunities open in the NFL: the New York Jets, the New Orleans Saints, and the Chicago Bears. More are likely to be added to that list, such as the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New York Giants, depending on how their season goes.

Chicago’s job opening will be the premier destination for head coaching candidates.

None of these teams will be a more attractive destination than Chicago. For one thing, the Bears have Caleb Williams, a rising star among quarterbacks, on a rookie deal. They will likely have three Top 40 picks in the upcoming draft and plenty of salary cap space. They also have several key building blocks and veteran leaders like DJ Moore, Jaylon Johnson (who reportedly was instrumental in the firing of Eberflus), and Cole Kmet.

Anyone looking for a head coaching job in the NFL this offseason will likely have Chicago at the top of their list. That includes some highly decorated coaches with head coaching experience, such as Mike Vrabel and Kliff Kingsbury (Kingsbury has also spent time around Williams at USC). Some impressive young offensive coordinators, guys like Ben Johnson, Kellen Moore and Joe Brady, will be vying for their first head coaching gig.

Could Thomas, a coach with limited playcalling and coaching experience, beat them out?

Brown, a head coaching candidate before, will have the pole position.

Despite his relative lack of experience, Brown has some key advantages in the race for the head coaching job. For one, he’s already in-house. It’d be easier for everyone involved if the future head coach of the Chicago Bears is already in the building.

Second, he has the respect of several people within and without the organization. Brown received head coaching interviews this past offseason and recently received high praise from Super Bowl champion head coach Sean McVay.

U wanna hear what Sean McVay thinks about #Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown… pic.twitter.com/g7z69IOUfD

— Barroom Network | Aldo Gandia (@BarroomNetwork) November 30, 2024

Brown spent three years coaching under McVay, including their Super Bowl season and even served as assistant head coach in the last two years of his time there. It’s unknown what exactly his duties and responsibilities as assistant head coach were, but you have to believe that McVay saw a lot of potential in Brown as a head coach and gave him some serious mentoring during that time.

Bears must end the season on a winning streak for Brown to remain credible.

However, none of this will be enough to keep Brown ahead of other coaching candidates if the Bears don’t start winning games. They have lost six straight since their bye week, a stretch of six games in which they could have, and probably should have, won four, five, or even all six. The roster is talented, and they’re playing well enough to beat even the best teams in the league, but coaching decisions let them down.

That can’t continue if Brown wants to win the head coaching job. With five games left in the season, the rest of the year should be considered his first interview, and it’s a doozy of a schedule. They face the 49ers next week, coached by Kyle Shanahan, and the surging Seahawks in Week 17. The Bears also have three more dates with their division rivals, two of which will be on the road.

If Brown runs the table, he will set himself up beautifully. That would earn the Bears their first winning season since 2018 and allow them to carry serious momentum into the offseason. It would also be the Bears’ first win over Green Bay since that same year, a rivalry that allegedly means a lot to team owner George McCaskey.

He doesn’t have to go undefeated this year to be a strong head coach candidate, but you have to think that 3-2 would be the bare minimum. Anything less than that will cause Brown to have a hard time arguing his case over other available candidates.