Bears name Alan Williams defensive coordinator, add 2 position coaches

Matt Eberflus is bringing a Colts cohort with him to run the Bears defense.

Alan Williams, the Colts’ defensive backs/safeties coach the last four seasons, was named the Bears’ defensive coordinator on Wednesday. He will call plays and run Eberflus’ 4-3, Cover 2 scheme. Eberflus was the Colts’ defensive coordinator the past four seasons.

The 52-year-old Williams has spent the last 21 years in the NFL. He was the Vikings’ defensive coordinator from 2012-13 and was the Lions’ defensive backs/safeties coach from 2014-17. He worked for the Colts in between, first as a the defensive backs coach from 2002-11 and then in the same role starting in 2018, when Eberflus was named defensive coordinator.

Eberflus is bringing another in another former Colts coach, Dave Borgonzi, to be in charge of the team’s linebackers. He spent the last four seasons in the same role with the Colts. Borgonzi coached under Lovie Smith in Tampa Bay from 2014-15. With the Colts, he helped develop star linebacker Darius Leonard. Borgonzi’s brother, Mike, worked closely with new Bears GM Ryan Poles in the Chiefs’ front office.

Eberflus picked an offensive line coach, too — Chris Morgan, the assistant offensive line coach for the Steelers last year and the offensive line coach for the Falcons from 2015-20. The Bears considered the offensive line coaching role critical to their team; Poles is a former offensive lineman himself.

The team interviewed Joe Brady for their quarterbacks coach job Wednesday but NFL Network reported Wednesday he is set to become the Bills’ quarterbacks coach.

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