Ben Johnson was a first-time head coach when he took over the Chicago Bears. In such circumstances, the common decision for such young guys is to surround themselves with more experienced assistants. That is what happened at defensive coordinator. Johnson brought in Dennis Allen, a two-time head coach with over a decade of experience. However, things took a turn when he hired Declan Doyle as the offensive coordinator. The 29-year-old is the definition of a young up-and-comer. He has limited experience and is nine years younger than Johnson. Why hire him for such an important job?
We first got answers to that right after the hiring. Doyle had a reputation for being smart and innovative. He had ideas that helped enhance a scheme. Johnson, always the mad scientist, wanted somebody like that on his staff. Over time, we've learned there might've been another important reason. One thing about Johnson is for all his offensive genius, there was one void in his resume. He'd never developed a quarterback in his career. He's worked almost exclusively with veterans throughout his career, such as Ryan Tannehill, Matthew Stafford, and Jared Goff. That meant Caleb Williams presented a challenge he wasn't familiar with. According to Adam Jahns of CHGO, that is where Doyle came in.
It was an important lesson to learn for a young coach. A different process played out last year in Denver after the Broncos drafted Bo Nix with the 12th pick. Payton took over the team in 2023 and brought Doyle in as his tight ends coach.
“We taught Bo the overall system,” Doyle said, “and then we did a good job of shaping it to Bo and bringing things that maybe he had done at Oregon or things that he had done in the past he was comfortable with.”
If that sounds familiar, it’s because it’s what the Bears have done with Williams.
“It was very similar to how we handled Caleb,” Doyle said. “Give him everything and then as you figure out what they’re good at, let’s narrow it down and reshape it during the season of, ‘Alright, this is who we are, this is what we’re going to do.’”
Declan Doyle watched how Denver handled Bo Nix last year.
That was such a vital lesson for the young coach. It gave him insight into how one of the best in the business handled it. Sean Payton isn't destined for the Hall of Fame by accident. The man understands how to cultivate the quarterback position better than most. Declan Doyle brought those experiences with him, as Johnson knew he would. Once the head coach understood the challenges of handling a young quarterback, he finally had a developmental plan in place. The early results are promising. Williams looked sharp for the most part in the preseason. He still has kinks to iron out, as expected. Nix was up and down through the first seven games of last season. Right around midseason was when things started clicking. One can safely assume it'll be something similar for Williams.
