Chuck Pagano, a longtime NFL coach who has spent the past two seasons as a defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears, is retiring, according to Mike Garofolo and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.
Pagano, 60, led a Bears defense that finished 11th and 8th in allowed yards during his two seasons with the team, respectively. In 2020, the Chicago defense finished 14th in the NFL in scoring, 12th in passes, 15th in races, 8th in 3rd down efficiency and 5th in efficiency in the red zone. The Bears defense was led by linebackers Khalil Mack (nine sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries), Roquan Smith (139 tackles, four sacks, two interceptions), Danny Trevathan (113 tackles) and safety Eddie Jackson (82 tackles, three forced fumbles). The Bears went 8-8 during the regular season before falling to the New Orleans Saints in the playoff wild card round.
Pagano began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at USC in 1984. After 18 seasons in college (including a six-year run as a secondary coach at the Miami Hurricanes), Pagano entered the NFL in 2001 as the Cleveland Browns’ secondary coach, position he held for four years.
After passing through Oakland and North Carolina, Pagano spent three years as a secondary coach for the Baltimore Ravens before spending the 2011 season as a defensive coordinator for Baltimore. In 2012, Pagano was hired as coach of the Indianapolis Colts, a position he held throughout the 2017 season. During his first seasons in Indianapolis, Pagano led the Colts to three playoff appearances and a trip to the game for the AFC title in 2014 .
The Bears will now begin the process of finding Pagano’s successor. Raheem Morris is among the possible candidates – he served as head coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Morris, who served as the defensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons last season, was 4-7 as interim coach for Atlanta after Dan Quinn was fired after a 0-5 start.