Just when you thought there was a clear chain of command regarding the Chicago Bears’ rapidly approaching search for a new head coach, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network throws a curve into the mix that will make most Bears shift in their seat.
Here is the latest video from the NFL insider:
From @NFLGameDay: A run through some coaches on the hot seat as the season winds to a close. #Colts, #Bears, #Bucs pic.twitter.com/y5x9KcqvGw
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 24, 2017
“Ted Phillips, their president, is doing homework now and trying to find out which candidates are going to be available in the likely event they decide John Fox is out,” Rapoport says.
*tugs on shirt collar nervously*
Phillips is one of the longest-tenured members of the organization. He’s been with the team since 1984 and has served mostly in a financial capacity. He has experience as the team’s Director of Finance, played a role as a contract negotiator, and a Vice President of Operations before his term as team President and CEO.
Since moving into the President/CEO role, Phillips was instrumental in the hiring of GM Jerry Angelo, taking training camp to Olivet Nazarene University, and finalizing the team’s Soldier Field renovation project.
Back in 2010, Monte Burke of Forbes wrote a not-so-flattering piece titled “How The Chicago Bears Fumbled Away A Fortune” and fingered Phillips as something of a culprit.
Here is an excerpt from that piece:
“The problem begins and ends with the ownership. The team is controlled by 87-year-old Virginia McCaskey, the daughter of Halas. The face of the franchise is her son, Michael, who never aspired to be the head of an NFL team (his brother, George, will take over next year). The day-to-day operations are led by Ted Phillips, an accountant. “We’re not one of those teams where an owner can infuse their own capital from their other personal business ventures,” says Phillips, explaining why the team isn’t more successful. “This is the McCaskey’s number one asset. Jerry Jones can leverage. We don’t have that ability.”
To be clear, it’s possible Rapoport was simply throwing out a “name” at the top of the front office, and was speaking generically. If Rapoport’s choice of words there was accurate, however, it’s frustrating to learn that an executive who isn’t GM Ryan Pace is already making the most important phone calls for a decision you’d rather he not be making.
At this point of his career, Pace should be empowered to make 100 percent of the football-related decisions. If he isn’t, the Bears could be muddying the waters between football and business decisions in a way that yields not only a bad process, but potentially, a bad outcome.
UPDATE: At least one report is pushing back on the idea that Phillips would be involved at a preliminary level:
#Bears sources also say any contract negotiation with a new coach would involve Phillips, but only after Pace makes the hiring decision. Money guy superseded by football guy, as it should be.
— Dan Bernstein (@dan_bernstein) December 24, 2017
Want a positive spin? Maybe Phillips is just involved at this stage to confirm/vet interest from candidates who might make for tricky/pricey negotiations.