Bears HC candidate profile: is Mike Kafka a serious option?

The Chicago Bears are searching for their next head coach, where general manager Ryan Poles will lead the charge in a wide-ranging search that will include up-and-coming coordinators, former head coaches, and even a current head coach.

As the coaching carousel begins to take its spins around the league, there have been many names being connected to the Bears, including New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, who is a surprising name on their list of candidates. Kafka has been the Giants offensive coordinator since 2022 and was named the assistant head coach this past season under Brian Daboll.

Now that Kafka has already interviewed with the Bears on Friday, here is an in-depth look at the offensive mind and what he could potentially bring to the Bears as their next head coach.

Background

• Current Job: Assistant head coach & offensive coordinator, New York Giants (2022-present)

• Age: 37

• Hometown: Chicago, Illinois

• College: Northwestern

Experience

• Assistant head coach & offensive coordinator, New York Giants (2024-present)

• Offensive coordinator, New York Giants (2022-2023)

• Quarterbacks coach & passing game coordinator, Kansas City Chiefs (2020-2021)

• Quarterbacks coach, Kansas City Chiefs (2018-2019)

• Offensive quality control coach, Kansas City Chiefs (2017)

• Graduate assistant, Northwestern (2016)

Fit with Bears

The Bears are looking at coaches from all backgrounds, but they're especially paying attention to offensive-minded individuals who can get the most out of quarterback Caleb Williams and help him develop into a star passer. That's why Kafka is being considered for the position; he coached one of the best quarterbacks in the league for a number of seasons.

Kafka was the quarterbacks coach of the Chiefs from 2018 to 2021, which coincides with the beginning of Patrick Mahomes' run as a dominant quarterback. Mahomes won MVP in 2018 while throwing 50 touchdowns and led the Chiefs to the Super Bowl the next year. His development with one of the best likely appeals to the Bears, who have high hopes for Williams. Kafka was seen as a rising star in coaching circles and diversified his experience when Daboll brought him to New York.

Since coming to the Giants, though, Kafka' hasn't enjoyed the same success. His tenure has been up and down over the last three years. He and Daboll turned Daniel Jones into a viable quarterback in 2022 during their postseason run when he threw for 3,205 yards, 15 touchdowns, and five picks, with Kafka serving as the primary playcaller. Things fell apart shortly after and haven't been the same since. The Giants have gone 9-25 over the last two years with a bottom-five offense, with Kafka losing playcalling responsibilities multiple times. Daboll and his staff were on the hot seat but were brought back by ownership. That's not exactly the type of production you want to see in a head coach candidate, yet Kafka is still highly thought of in coaching circles.

They said it...

"Coach Kafka is a special person and a special coach. He kind of took me [under his wing], when he first got here—he was quality control [coach] and that was my first year as a rookie. I spent a lot of hours with coach Kafka where he was teaching me the playbook and teaching me how to become a quarterback in the NFL. That continued for a long time."

-- Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on Mike Kafka's role as his quarterback's coach

Bottom line

Kafka is a young, bald, offensive-minded coach who rose through the ranks with Andy Reid while helping develop one of the best quarterbacks in the league and doesn't have too much experience as a playcaller. Does that sound familiar? It feels like Kafka is on the same trajectory as Matt Nagy and could become a head coach in the not-too-distant future. Not this year, though.

The Bears bringing in Kafka for an interview feels like more of a fact-finding mission than anything. How did he work with Mahomes in Kansas City? What did he learn in New York with a first-time head coach? Could he find a way to make a lateral move to Chicago as an offensive coordinator if the Bears hire someone else? Kafka's name being included in this search raised eyebrows, and for good reason. Teams aren't exactly banging down the door trying to talk with the offensive coordinator of the 31st-ranked offense.

It would be a shocking upset to see Kafka land this job when candidates like Ben Johnson, Mike Vrabel, Joe Brady, and Todd Monken are all on the Bears radar. But when you have the chance to talk with someone who played a critical role in the development of one of the best quarterbacks on the planet, you should take it. Of course the Bears could always opt to interview Nagy, too, but it's safe to say that chapter is officially closed.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears HC candidate profile: is Mike Kafka a serious option?