The Bears have “decided to go in a different direction with the defensive coordinator’s position,” says Bears head coach Lovie Smith. With Rivera not coming back, the Bears will lose the coordinator that guided them to 3 years of great defensive football.

I suspect that there were philosophical differences between Smith and Rivera. They both took the high road (as would be expected) about the situation, both claiming that they were moving in different directions. Rivera is obviously interested in becoming a head coach, he has interviewed for 8 head coaching opportunities in the last 2 years. It would make sense that Lovie Smith, in trying to create a sustainable defensive plan would want someone in place that will remain with the team.

Rivera took the job as the linebackers coach for the San Diego Chargers late Monday. This is an obvious step down. Why make the move? Obviously no other team in their right mind would hire him for anything other than a head coach, knowing that he’s inline for that position anyway. They know he’d be leaving at the first chance he gets. It’s a smart move for the Chargers. They get his expertise, but they also have a defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell who has also been inline for some head coaching positions. It could be risky for the Chargers, but they have 2 of the up and coming defensive minds in the NFL. If one of them leaves, the other can fill in. If they both bounce, the Chargers defense could be in trouble.

As for the Bears, it will be interesting to see who Lovie brings in to fill the position. I’m sure it will be someone with similar coaching lineage as Smith. Someone who knows the Tampa Two defense.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 20th, 2007 at 2:23 pm and is filed under Chicago Bears, Football, NFL. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.