The Bears Meeting With Mike Kafka Appears To Have Ulterior Motives
Most of the candidates the Chicago Bears have opted to interview for their head coaching job fit one of two criteria. They are either former head coaches with considerable experience or current coordinators who’ve had considerable success over the past few years. However, with the Bears, it always feels like there is at least one outlier every time they do this. True to form, that happened again when news broke they would meet with New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka.
He doesn’t fit either criteria. He hasn’t been a head coach anywhere and his offense hasn’t exactly been a resounding success out east. Many can’t understand why the Bears would bother meeting with him. Kafka did have some growing buzz a few years ago in 2022 after helping the Giants make the playoffs. It’s been all downhill since. Many feel this is GM Ryan Poles doing a favor for a friend. The two worked together in Kansas City for five seasons, winning a Super Bowl in 2019. However, Adam Hoge of CHGO is hearing there might be deeper motives involved.
Ones that don’t involve the head coaching job.
I’d be surprised if Kafka is the hire, but there are a few reasons why the Bears interviewed him. One, depending on which direction the Bears go, Kafka could be an interesting offensive coordinator hire. He is still under contract with the New York Giants for at least one more season, but it’s possible Brian Daboll would allow him to go elsewhere to run his own offense. Perhaps more relevant, Kafka was with Ryan Poles in Kansas City from 2017-21 when the Chiefs drafted and developed Patrick Mahomes into the best quarterback in the NFL. Kafka was an offensive assistant in 2017 when the team “redshirted” Mahomes and then was the superstar’s quarterback coach the next four seasons. At minimum, his insight in an interview might be valuable to the Bears, who are entering a crucial year with Caleb Williams.
Mike Kafka could be a strong addition in the right spot.
Offensive coordinator feels a bit out of place. People won’t accept that after what happened in New York. However, as a quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator? That would be perfect. Patrick Mahomes had the two highest-rated seasons of his NFL career in 2019 and 2020. Kafka was the QB coach for both. It is apparent he has a knack for helping elevate the position, which isn’t a surprise since he played the position at Northwestern. He’s a Chicago native as well, so this kind of job would be appealing to him.
The Giants have retained their current power structure going into next season, but it feels as if changes are coming at some level. Mike Kafka may wish to get out of dodge while he can. Jumping to the Bears on a fresh staff would allow him to rebuild his profile as a future head coach. There is no doubt he’d be a positive influence on Caleb Williams. It may come down to who the Bears end up making their next head coach.