On Wednesday, the Chicago Bears announced that Montreal Alouettes Head Coach Marc Trestman has been hired to replace Lovie Smith as the Bears 14th Head Coach in team history.
Trestman, who mentored Bears quarterbacks Jay Cutler and Jason Campbell before they entered the NFL Draft in their respective years of eligibility brings a wealth of experience and knowledge on the offensive side of the football.
He has worked with the likes of Steve Young, Rich Gannon, Bernie Kosar, Jake Plummer, Scott Mitchell, and others in the NFL rankings and of course had future Canadian Football Hall of Fame quarterback Anthony Calvillo in his time with the Alouettes.
Trestman beat out Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Bruce Arians as well as Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell to become the Bears next sideline boss.
The Minnesota native has already tabbed his first hire with the Bears, as former New Orleans Saints offensive line coach Aaron Kromer has accepted the job as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach with the team.
Kromer of course was the Saints first interim head coach this season, ahead of assistant head coach Joe Vitt who was suspended for the first six games of the season. Both men were filling in for Sean Payton who was suspended for the entire season as a result of "Bounty-Gate"
Under Kromer's watch, the Saints posed one of the top offensive lines in all of football.
The Bears have come under fire in recent seasons for their inability to protect quarterback Jay Cutler, which led to injuries and missed games. Cutler was injured in the Bears loss to the Green Bay Packers in the 2010/11 NFC Championship Game.
In many circumstances, there is a link between a head coach and the staff that he chooses. In the case of Trestman and Kromer, you have to roll back the clock about 10 years ago.
When Trestman was the offensive coordinator of the Oakland Raiders, Kromer worked under him as the team's offensive line coach.
On the defensive side of the football, the early indication is that Rod Marinelli will retain his job as the Bears defensive coordinator. Marinelli joined the Bears in 2009 after he was fired as the head coach of the Detroit Lions.
In 2012, the Bears had one of the NFL's best defences, as they posted Top 5 numbers in points allowed, yards allowed, interceptions, and turnovers.
The hiring of Marc Trestman is significant to the Chicago Bears in a couple of different ways:
- The Canadian Football League. While Trestman does have years upon years of coaching at the NCAA or NFL level, he was never a head coach until he went to the Alouettes. Perhaps it is what he needed to seal the deal for a NFL gig. Nobody would ever deny that Trestman knows quarterbacks and knows how to make an offence run. However, his ability to be the head guy was always a question, and having those five years of experience with Montreal, winning two Grey Cups, it is evident that the time was right for Trestman and the NFL.
- The Bears have a long standing history of hiring defensive head coaches. Lovie Smith, Dick Jauron, Dave Wannstedt, the three previous to Trestman all with vast defensive backgrounds. You have to look back to the 1980's and Mike Ditka to see the last time the Bears had a head coach who had the offensive credentials.
Even at that, Ditka was much more involved on the defensive side of the football.
Trestman is a major change of pace for the Chicago Bears and their fanbase, which could bring some negative reaction initially, but once Trestman gets his coaching staff in place, they get to the NFL Draft, OTA's, Training Camp, and then the actual games, I think the reaction will become more positive.
No comments:
Post a Comment