The Chicago Bears have reached out to at least 13 general manager and 10 coaching candidates for interviews. As they go through the process, we’re looking at each of the prospective hires.
Jim Caldwell interviewed for the coach opening Saturday, the team announced.
Jim Caldwell
Title: Former Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts head coach.
Age: 67
Experience
Caldwell went 62-50 with four playoff appearances over three seasons with the Colts and four seasons with the Lions. In his first season as a head coach in 2009, he led the Colts to a 14-2 record and a Super Bowl appearance, where they lost to the New Orleans Saints.
Caldwell spent more than two decades coaching in college, including as the head coach at Wake Forest in the 1990s. He moved to the NFL to coach quarterbacks with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a season and the Colts for seven seasons, working with Peyton Manning, including during the 2006 Super Bowl season.
Hall of Fame executive Bill Polian, who is on the Bears search committee, promoted Caldwell to head coach in 2009 to replace Tony Dungy, and Polian and Caldwell were fired in 2011 after a 2-14 season in which Manning was out with a neck injury.
After his stint as Colts head coach, Caldwell spent two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, working with Joe Flacco during the 2012 Super Bowl season before he was named Lions head coach in 2014. He had three winning seasons in Detroit and was fired after back-to-back 9-7 seasons.
You should know
After the Lions fired him, Caldwell joined the Miami Dolphins as assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach in 2019. But he took a leave of absence to address health issues before the season started and hasn’t coached since.
He said in the summer of 2020 that he had an issue that required better diet, exercise and rest and he was “feeling great.”
Chicago connections
Caldwell is from Beloit, Wis., went to Iowa and had early-career college assistant coaching gigs at Southern Illinois and Northwestern.
He won a Super Bowl ring with the 2006 Colts team that beat the Bears for the title.
In four seasons with the Lions, Caldwell’s teams went 7-1 against the Bears. Since Caldwell was fired, the Lions are 1-7 against the Bears.
What’s been said
Before Manning’s first Super Bowl appearance in Denver, according to the Indianapolis Star, he said, “Jim meant a great deal to me in my career. I felt like once he got to Indianapolis and became my quarterbacks coach, my game really improved. It took a step up. ... He and I had a set routine that we tried to perform every day in the meeting room, on the practice field, in different drills. And from 2003 to 2008, when he was my quarterbacks coach, I was playing at a high level.”
In 2016, Polian spoke with DetroitLions.com to talk about why he believed it was good the Lions retained Caldwell after a 7-9 season.
“When you saw what he did with them two years ago, when they were healthy, and they had (Ndamukong) Suh and a complete cast on defense, there’s no question that the players responded to him,” Polian said. “If you talk to the players, even today, they are 100 percent in his corner. They believe he takes them in the right direction, that he takes care of them, that he gets them to the game in good shape physically, mentally and strategically.”
History photos: Chicago's Soldier Field through the years
Soldier Field - 2003

A view of the renovated Soldier Field at the first Bears home game of 2003.
Soldier Field - 1971

A kick sails over a mass of Bear defenders to clear the crossbar and give Washington a 3-0 lead at Soldier Field on Nov. 14, 1971. The Bears have played their home games at Soldier Field since 1971.
Soldier Field - 1931

Soldier Field, Grant Park and the lakefront in 1931.
Soldier Field - 1959

Chicago's Johnny Morris (47) goes for three yards with John Roach (33) hot on his trail Nov. 29, 1959, during a Bears game against the Cardinals at Soldier Field.
Soldier Field - 1987

Things were looking down for Bears coach Mike Ditka and his players late in the first half before they rallied for a 27-26 victory against Tampa Bay on Oct. 25, 1987, at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Soldier Field - 1926

Cardinal Mundelein, from left, the Rev. William R. Griffin and C. G. Guill look over Soldier Field in preparation for the 28th International Eucharistic Congress, circa 1925. The congress was held in Chicago from June 20-24, 1926, and was hosted by Mundelein. The large, open-air Mass was held at Soldier Field with an estimated 500,000 people attending.
Soldier Field - 1933

A crowd of 125,000 would end up filling Soldier Field for the Jewish Day pageant "The Romance of a People," during the Century of Progress World's Fair, circa 1933. "Attendance was one of the largest of the entire Exposition, more than 244,000 admissions being recorded," the Tribune wrote of the day's fair attendance.
Soldier Field - 1928

Jack Cope, parachute jumper, landing in Soldier Field in 1928.
Soldier Field - 1939

Mount Carmel High School fans just couldn't stay in their seats as the Catholic league champion rallied in the fourth quarter to tie the game against Fenger High School, 13-13, in Mayor Kelly's sixth annual prep title game played at Soldier Field on Dec. 2, 1939.
Soldier Field - 1962

An aerial view of Soldier Field, the scene of the rally conducted by evangelist Billy Graham on June 17, 1962, in Chicago.
Soldier Field - 1946

President Harry S. Truman waves to the crowds gathered at Soldier Field on April 6, 1946, in Chicago. He circled the field in his car before he made his speech to the crowd.
Soldier Field - 1978

One of the first in line when the gates opened at 7:30 a.m. was Mike Orman of Elk Grove, who proudly displays his precious ticket to see the Rolling Stones on July 8, 1978, at Soldier Field.
Soldier Field - 1959

The sky over Soldier Field is illuminated in a brilliant fireworks display, marking the close of the 30th Chicagoland Music Festival in 1959.
Soldier Field - 1959

Mayor Richard J. Daley is a fan when his Chicago preps compete, in fair weather or foul. He beams through snowflakes that hit Soldier Field on Nov. 28, 1959, shortly after the Lane vs. Fenwick Prep Bowl game began.
Soldier Field - 1943

Part of a huge crowd attending the Hollywood Bond rally in Soldier Field on Sept. 16, 1943, during World War II.
Soldier Field - 1936

The first Chicago Ski Tournament held at Soldier Field on Feb. 16, 1936. A huge slide was erected on the south end of the lakefront arena. An unemployed road worker from Minnesota, Eugene Wilson, 22, won the tournament with a 68-foot jump. A snowstorm prevented the skiers from making attempts on the steel slide, which was erected over the permanent stands in the south end of the arena.
Soldier Field - 1932

Rear Adm. Walter Crosley, from left, Amelia Earhart and Maj. Gen. Frank Parker salute the flag on the reviewing stand at the George Washington bicentennial military tournament held at Soldier Field on June 24, 1932.
Soldier Field - 1961

Spectators hold up matches to light up Soldier Field during a ceremony that is a highlight of the Chicagoland Music Festival in 1961.
Soldier Field - 1974

The Chicago Fire take to the field in their opening game against the Houston Texans on July 10, 1974, at Soldier Field.
Soldier Field - 1948

The Chicagoland Music Festival held at Soldier Field in August 1948.
Soldier Field - 1927

On Sept. 22, 1927, Jack Dempsey lost to Gene Tunney at Soldier Field, but Tunney may have benefited when he was knocked down in what historians describe as the famous "long count."
Soldier Field - 1959

Alponse Cahue, of Mexico City, attends the opening day of the Pan Am Games at Soldier Field on Sept. 2, 1959.
Soldier Field - 1927

Mike Hastings of Fort Worth, Texas, at Chicago's third annual World Championship Rodeo held at Soldier Field in August 1927. Hastings won first place in 1927 when he threw his steer in 13 seconds. The Tribune reported that more than 350,000 visitors had witnessed the nine-day rodeo, which started Aug. 20 and ended Aug. 29.
Soldier Field - 1973

An aerial image of Soldier Field, taken by the Goodyear blimp in 1973.
Soldier Field - 2003

Pregame fireworks before the Bears-Packers game at the newly renovated Soldier Field on Sept. 29, 2003.