Chicago Bears Johnson hire opens path for McCarthy to Saints

By Ross Jackson

It did not take long for the top head coach candidate to ink a deal after becoming available. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Chicago Bears are finalizing a deal to hire Ben Johnson, Detroit Lions offensive coordinator, to be their next head coach.

This move makes things interesting for the New Orleans Saints, who have had an eye out for another of the Bears’ top candidates, former Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy.

With Johnson now expected to step in as the Bears’ new head coach, along with former Saints coach Dennis Allen, McCarthy is effectively uncontested as an option on the open market. That’s a good thing for the Saints, whose other top candidate is set to interview with the New York Jets on Tuesday before meeting with the Saints on Wednesday. However, if Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn accepts the Jets job, the meeting with New Orleans may never take place.

McCarthy was the Saints’ offensive coordinator from 2000 to 2004 and has been thought highly of by some of the key decision makers for the team’s next head coaching position.

New Orleans played things slowly, not allowing the perception that McCarthy would leap frog other candidates. However, now there is no need for them to do so. If they miss out on Glenn, pulling the trigger quickly to hire McCarthy makes sense for the franchise. He’s a safe hire with a Super Bowl-winning history, a winning record as a head coach, and one of the few 10-plus win playoff coaches currently active in the NFL.

Even with an abundance of disappointing postseason exits, the Saints would still find a playoff appearance enticing after having missed postseason play for the last four years.

There is no done deal when it comes to McCarthy, but with Johnson headed to Chicago, if the Saints end up wanting to hire the ex-Cowboys coach, their runway is wide open.

(Posted on Monday, Jan. 20 at 3:15 pm)