Bears hire former Saints head coach Dennis Allen as next DC, Declan Doyle as OC

Ben Johnson has found his top two coordinators.

The new Chicago Bears coach hired both his offensive and defensive coordinators on Sunday afternoon, according to multiple reports. The team struck a deal with former New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen to become their next defensive coordinator. They also agreed with Denver Broncos tight ends coach Declan Doyle to become their next offensive coordinator.

Allen spent the last three seasons as the head coach in New Orleans, though he was fired after just nine games this past season. It marked his second stint as a head coach in the league, following a three-year run with the Oakland Raiders. Allen was the Denver Broncos’ defensive coordinator for a year before his stint in Oakland, and then he spent seven seasons as the Saints’ defensive coordinator before he was promoted to the top job in 2022.

Allen went just 18-25 and failed to make the playoffs during his time leading the Saints. He was fired after a rough late loss to the Carolina Panthers, which capped a seven-game losing skid after back-to-back wins to start the year.

Doyle spent the past two seasons with the Broncos, where he worked as their tight ends coach. Before that, the 28-year-old Iowa graduate spent four seasons with the Saints alongside Allen as an offensive assistant coach in what was his first job in the league.

Johnson, after spending the past three seasons as the Detroit Lions’ offensive coordinator, was hired to replace Matt Eberflus in Chicago earlier this month. He also retained special teams coordinator Richard Hightower on Sunday. Now with three of his main coordinators in place, he can start working to turn the franchise around and lead them to what would be their first playoff appearance in half of a decade.