Bears will reportedly interview former Titans RB Eddie George for head-coaching job

It's rare to have an NFL head-coaching interview to come as a complete surprise. But the Chicago Bears did it.

The Bears will interview Eddie George for their vacant head-coaching job on Sunday, according to Fox Sports' Jay Glazer. George, a Heisman Trophy winner who had more than 10,000 rushing yards in his NFL career and has been coaching at Tennessee State University, hadn't been listed as a candidate for any of the vacant NFL jobs.

George is just 24-22 as Tennessee State's head coach, but is coming off a good season. He was the runner-up for the Eddie Robinson FCS Coach of the Year award after leading his team to a 9-4 record. The Tigers finished in a four-way tie for their conference championship and made the FCS playoffs for just the second time since 1999.

George is well known to football fans. He won a Heisman Trophy in 1995 at Ohio State, was a first-round pick of the Houston Oilers and had seven 1,000-yard seasons for the Oilers and then the Tennessee Titans after the franchise moved. He spent the final season of his career with the Dallas Cowboys. He had no coaching experience when Tennessee State hired him to be its head coach in 2021.

The Bears have had a vacancy since firing Matt Eberflus after a rough Thanksgiving loss to the Detroit Lions. The Bears went 5-12 but have some intriguing players, including Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Chicago has interviewed several candidates, most notably Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and former Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy. Almost two weeks into the offseason, they added a surprising new name to their list.