He’s one of the more intriguing candidates to replace Chuck Pagano.
Getty Head coach Matt Nagy of the Chicago Bears With the retirement of defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano coming this week, the Chicago Bears are now in need of a new DC — and preferably one who can get the most out of aging players in their prime. With players like Khalil Mack, Danny Trevathan, Akiem Hicks and Robert Quinn all slated to be 30+ years old when the 2021 season begins, whoever comes in is going to face the challenge of fixing an aging yet talented defense that has shown signs of fatigue this year. The Bears regressed on defense slightly in Pagano’s two year tenure. Under former DC Vic Fangio, the Bears surrendered 15.9 points a game in 2017 and 14.2 points a game in 2018. When Pagano took over in 2019, Chicago gave up 18.5 points per contest — a total that slipped to 23.1 this season. They also had a 20 interceptions in the two years since Pagano took over. During the 2018 season alone, the Bears had 27 picks, so there is definite room for improvement. One name that has been making the rounds as a potential DC candidate is former Cowboys and Seahawks coordinator Kris Richard. Chicago’s own 670 The Score, NBC Sports, Bleacher Nation and The Athletic have all named Richard as a possibility to fill Pagano’s shoes, and he’s an intriguing possibility.
