Tweet
The Chicago Bears fired coach Lovie Smith on Monday, the team announced.
General manager Phil Emery will hold a news conference to discuss the coaching change on Tuesday morning.
Chicago and Arizona, which fired Ken Whisenhunt on Monday, have asked for and received permission to interview Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy for their head coaching vacancy, a source told ESPN. McCoy will interview this weekend. Atlanta Falcons special teams coordinator Keith Armstrong also will be interviewed by the Bears, a source told ESPNChicago.com's Michael C. Wright. Armstrong was on the Bears staff from 1997-2000 while Emery was a scout for the Bears from '98-'04. They also overlapped with the Falcons.
The Bears missed the playoffs for the fifth time in the last six seasons despite starting this season 7-1.
The Bears finished 10-6 but were denied a playoff spot when the Vikings beat the Packers on Sunday.
As reports of Smith's ouster started to surface on Twitter, Bears quarterback Jay Cutler was doing "The Jay Cutler Show" on ESPN 1000 and had to leave early.
"I think it's going to be a sad day at Halas Hall," Cutler said. "I have a lot of respect for the guy. He's made friends with a lot of the players. He's a players' coach. I think right now I'm a little surprised, a little sad. Wish I could have done more offensively to help him out."
Bears receiver Devin Hester was so emotional after hearing the news that he talked about retiring.
"I don't even know if I want to play again," Hester said. "That's been something on my mind for two years."
Smith addressed the players at Halas Hall.
"(He said) just that it was a privilege to coach us and be part of this organization," center Roberto Garza said. "There are a lot of guys that respect coach Lovie Smith. It was a tough room to be in.
"There are a lot of opportunities out there for him. Obviously he wants to be here but that's not the scenario. Coach Lovie Smith is a great coach and a great man and he'll get an opportunity somewhere."
The 54-year-old Smith, who led the Bears to the Super Bowl after the 2006 season, was 81-63 over eight regular seasons and was 3-3 in the playoffs.
Smith was under contract through 2013, and Emery did not engage the coach in contract talks on an extension during the season.
Bears assistants, which all remain under contract, were told to stay at Halas Hall in their respective offices until further notice. By noon CT, nothing had changed.
According to one NFL source, there's a feeling among the assistants that eventually they'll all be let go. The source said that with Smith out, some of the assistants don't want to return in 2013 to work for a new coach.
Smith was particularly criticized for Chicago's struggles on offense. Despite have a Pro Bowl receiver in Brandon Marshall and solid players in Cutler and running back Matt Forte, the Bears ranked 28th in total offense. Smith was a defensive coach, but Cutler wouldn't say if he would prefer an offensive-minded coach to replace Smith.
"I've had both," Cutler said. "There's pluses and minuses to argue each case. I'm not going to give a preference on what I want, what I don't want because I don't really know at this point. I trust Phil and management and George (McCaskey) and those guys to make the best call. They're going to get the best possible head coach and assistant coaches and coordinators as they can. So you've just got to trust in that."
Smith also struggled to beat Green Bay. The Bears have lost eight of their last nine against the Packers and six straight.
The other big issue was the Bears' poor finishes under Smith. Chicago lost seven straight December games since 2010 before snapping its skid with a Week 16 victory over the Cardinals. During Smith's nine seasons, the Bears were 17-19 in December.
Source: AP
General manager Phil Emery will hold a news conference to discuss the coaching change on Tuesday morning.
Chicago and Arizona, which fired Ken Whisenhunt on Monday, have asked for and received permission to interview Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy for their head coaching vacancy, a source told ESPN. McCoy will interview this weekend. Atlanta Falcons special teams coordinator Keith Armstrong also will be interviewed by the Bears, a source told ESPNChicago.com's Michael C. Wright. Armstrong was on the Bears staff from 1997-2000 while Emery was a scout for the Bears from '98-'04. They also overlapped with the Falcons.
The Bears missed the playoffs for the fifth time in the last six seasons despite starting this season 7-1.
The Bears finished 10-6 but were denied a playoff spot when the Vikings beat the Packers on Sunday.
As reports of Smith's ouster started to surface on Twitter, Bears quarterback Jay Cutler was doing "The Jay Cutler Show" on ESPN 1000 and had to leave early.
"I think it's going to be a sad day at Halas Hall," Cutler said. "I have a lot of respect for the guy. He's made friends with a lot of the players. He's a players' coach. I think right now I'm a little surprised, a little sad. Wish I could have done more offensively to help him out."
Bears receiver Devin Hester was so emotional after hearing the news that he talked about retiring.
"I don't even know if I want to play again," Hester said. "That's been something on my mind for two years."
Smith addressed the players at Halas Hall.
"(He said) just that it was a privilege to coach us and be part of this organization," center Roberto Garza said. "There are a lot of guys that respect coach Lovie Smith. It was a tough room to be in.
"There are a lot of opportunities out there for him. Obviously he wants to be here but that's not the scenario. Coach Lovie Smith is a great coach and a great man and he'll get an opportunity somewhere."
The 54-year-old Smith, who led the Bears to the Super Bowl after the 2006 season, was 81-63 over eight regular seasons and was 3-3 in the playoffs.
Smith was under contract through 2013, and Emery did not engage the coach in contract talks on an extension during the season.
Bears assistants, which all remain under contract, were told to stay at Halas Hall in their respective offices until further notice. By noon CT, nothing had changed.
According to one NFL source, there's a feeling among the assistants that eventually they'll all be let go. The source said that with Smith out, some of the assistants don't want to return in 2013 to work for a new coach.
Smith was particularly criticized for Chicago's struggles on offense. Despite have a Pro Bowl receiver in Brandon Marshall and solid players in Cutler and running back Matt Forte, the Bears ranked 28th in total offense. Smith was a defensive coach, but Cutler wouldn't say if he would prefer an offensive-minded coach to replace Smith.
"I've had both," Cutler said. "There's pluses and minuses to argue each case. I'm not going to give a preference on what I want, what I don't want because I don't really know at this point. I trust Phil and management and George (McCaskey) and those guys to make the best call. They're going to get the best possible head coach and assistant coaches and coordinators as they can. So you've just got to trust in that."
Smith also struggled to beat Green Bay. The Bears have lost eight of their last nine against the Packers and six straight.
The other big issue was the Bears' poor finishes under Smith. Chicago lost seven straight December games since 2010 before snapping its skid with a Week 16 victory over the Cardinals. During Smith's nine seasons, the Bears were 17-19 in December.
Source: AP