Ben Johnson and the Chicago Bears already have work to do replacing what they lost with their season ending in the NFC Divisional Playoffs.
Johnson took over the Bears last offseason. He transformed one of the league’s more moribund groups and made them a playoff team. The first task of his second offseason at the helm will be reconfiguring his coaching staff. It was vital to his and the team’s success.
Bears tight end Cole Kmet underscored that reality.
Ben Johnson, Bears Get Reality Check About Key Loss
Cole Kmet: Bears Suffered ‘Big Loss’
Johnson has seen two staffers leave this offseason. Both are on his side of the ball. Now-former Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle and running backs coach Eric Bieniemy both left for OC roles.
Doyle with play calling duties with the Baltimore Ravens. Bieniemy returned to the Kansas City Chiefs, saying it was one of, if not the only, destinations he would have left for.
Kmet called both losses “big” for the Bears.
“Two great coaches and guys that provide a lot of value to the offensive side of the ball this year,” Kmet said on “Rahimi, Harris & Grote” on February 2. “Even though Declan doesn’t call the plays for us, the amount of work that he did on the offensive side of the football was immense. And you can see that in day to day, in practice, and, I’m sure, it took a lot off of Ben throughout the week for his duties as a head coach.”
Johnson lauded what Doyle provided in that regard. Doyle arrived with similar reviews from his previous HC, Sean Payton, whom he worked for with the Denver Broncos and, before that, the New Orleans Saints.
Kmet noted that he was not privy to specific details regarding Doyle’s exact duties. Players are gone from the team facilities before coaches.
However, the fast-rising assistant had his hands in plenty of projects when players were around.
“You can tell with things, in terms of getting the scout team correct. Getting all those cards ready, dialed up, ready to go. Whether it’s scripting the practice, I’m sure Declan had a huge say as to what plays we’re going to have up and what looks we were going to get,” Kmet said.
“And then, on Fridays and Saturdays–when we’d go over our film from Fridays on Saturday morning–Declan’s the guy going over that tape with the whole skill group, and then kind of leading us in the walkthrough on Saturday before our main mini-walkthrough before we get to the hotel. So yeah, Declan was very hands-on with all of us. And that is a big role.”
Declan Doyle Played Critical Role for Comeback Bears
Kmet acknowledged the play-calling aspect. However, he harped on all of the other matters Doyle handled for the Bears. Kmet noted the assistants do “a lot” of prep work that “shows up big time” in games.
Doyle also played a key role in a significant aspect of the Bears’ resurgent season.
“Another thing Declan was great at is–I’m sure Ben, as the head coach, there’s a lot of things you gotta handle at halftime. Declan’s the one addressing the offense at halftime, kind of, going over the openers that are going to be coming up in the second half, and telling us what we need to do, what they’re seeing, and how we can make adjustments.”
The Bears went 11-5 in games they trailed their opponent at halftime during the 2025 season, per Statmuse. That underscores how significant a loss Doyle was for Johnson and the Bears.