Rivera Likely Gone in Chicago

[Vinatieri for Prez]

ESPN.com is reporting that at this stage, the Bears will not be bringing back Rivera as defensive coordinator. His contract has basically run out and they aren't interested in meeting Rivera's demands on a new contract.

Could be a negotiating ploy but seeing how Lovie Smith is still under his old contract, this could likely happen.

[Neuqua]

He's as good as gone. The Bears organization was hopeful that he would recieve a head coaching job somewhere this offseason and so it would have looked like River was making a "step up" in the business but now that the Chargers are hiring Norv Turner, it really left the Bears no other choice but to make the announcement.

[molson]

So is this a "firing", or is he basically demanding to be paid like a head coach?

His next head coaching job interview will be in 10th in two years. Maybe he doesn't make good eye contact or something.

[mauchow]

What the heck. I'm sure he could've found a job somewhere else, but he takes the Chargers linebacker's coach job. Wow. Didn't see that one coming.

[Eaglesfan27]

Unless he had some outlandish contract demands, this seems like a VERY bad move by the Bears with the potential morale and reputation hit that they take from this.

[stevew]

Isn't he the guy who decided to single cover Steve Smith in the playoffs last year? Just sayin.....

[Easy Mac]

My purely speculative guess, there's language in his Chargers contract that if Turner doesn't work out in the next couple of years, he'll be named the head coach, or at least be the first in line.

[Maple Leafs]

So his contract just runs out, he's never fired, and he signs with some other team right away?

I take back everything I said about how unrealistic FOF's coaching system was.

[stevew]

Wow, the chargers now have 2 LB coaches for their 4 linebackers. Seems a bit excessive.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

What the heck. I'm sure he could've found a job somewhere else, but he takes the Chargers linebacker's coach job. Wow. Didn't see that one coming.

That was fast. 30 minutes after reading about the contract snag, ESPN updates its article saying he's off to San Diego. Here I thought I was on top of things, but my thread title was out of date after 30 minutes.

The article paints this as a good thing for Rivera (ability to learn the 3-4), putting him in good shape for a HC job next year. However I see this as nothing but bad for him. He interviews for 9 HC jobs, gets none. Then a Superbowl team doesn't even want him back. Then he becomes a LB coach? I may be wrong but I predict he will not become a HC next season or in the near future.

[Atocep]

He's overrated as a defensive coordinator, but his skills (communication/teaching) may actually make him better suited to be a head coach than coordinator down the line.

Rivera was a good teacher, but his gameplans and game day decisions were poor. If a team found something that worked, they could run it for at least a half before Rivera would make any changes to the defense. The Bears defense is more Lovie and the players than Ron Rivera.

[14ers]

I wonder if this is a case of putting all your eggs in one basket.


Did he even allow himself to be interveiwed for Defensive Coordinator jobs, or was he only pursuing Head coaching jobs and turning down everything else?


Rivera and his agent can try to spin this all they want, but this is a major coaching Demotion.

[Groundhog]

Wow, the chargers now have 2 LB coaches for their 4 linebackers. Seems a bit excessive.

Not after they draft 7 LBs in this coming draft and field their revolutionary 3-8 D next season.

[Fonzie]

Profootballtalk.com is speculating that this move was part of Lovie Smith's strategy to leverage a better offer out of the Bears. The thinking is that Rivera would be a ready in-house replacement in case Lovie doesn't accept the Bears' lowball offer. Without Rivera around the Bears might thus be more willing to pony up some decent cash for Lovie.

[Antmeister]

So his contract just runs out, he's never fired, and he signs with some other team right away?

I take back everything I said about how unrealistic FOF's coaching system was.


LOL! Nice. :D

[Vinatieri for Prez]

Profootballtalk.com is speculating that this move was part of Lovie Smith's strategy to leverage a better offer out of the Bears. The thinking is that Rivera would be a ready in-house replacement in case Lovie doesn't accept the Bears' lowball offer. Without Rivera around the Bears might thus be more willing to pony up some decent cash for Lovie.

And Rivera would do this why? Because Lovie asked him too? That doesn't really make much sense to me. Are you saying Lovie fired him? If the Bears knew that was the reason, they would fire Lovie right now and re-hire Rivera as HC if that was the case. They could still do it. I just think for whatever reason, Lovie AND the Bears didn't want him anymore.

[TroyF]

Bizzare situation. I guess the real question is how much Rivera had to do with the D and how much was Lovie. Even if it was a 50/50 split, it's kinda hard to stomach this one. The Bears did have one of the top defenses in the league the last few years and continued to win despite an erratic offense.

The Lovie thing doesn't really add up to me. If it was Lovie forcing him out the door because he wanted a bigger contract and e didn't want Rivera to be there to take his place, it seems like a monster miscalculation. Rivera will still be somewhere next year and it won't be as a head coach. (I know he's with SD now, I'm saying this as of yesterday before the news broke)

So Rivera will still know the system, the players, the coaching staff. . .

What a horrible year for him though. He goes from interviewing for every head coaching position in the world to a LB coach in a span of a month. Strange.

[Logan]

I wonder if this is a case of putting all your eggs in one basket.


Did he even allow himself to be interveiwed for Defensive Coordinator jobs, or was he only pursuing Head coaching jobs and turning down everything else?


Rivera and his agent can try to spin this all they want, but this is a major coaching Demotion.


Off hand, I can't think of any coordinators who had their contracts up at the same time they were being interviewed for HC jobs. Unless that is just something you don't usually hear about...for all I know, it's been happening to a bunch of guys this year too.

I think one of the reasons this happened is this offseason has had a very long HC-filling period. You have all of the jobs that were opened/filled during the playoffs, and then the Cowboys and now the Chargers extended well past the Super Bowl. Usually we hear how the coordinators for SB teams miss out on the HC jobs because they're coaching so long.

[stevew]

Rivera was unable to interview for any DC jobs for up to 3 monday's after the superbowl. So basically, he couldn't have taken a DC job at that point.

[CU Tiger]

Makes no sense, reports indicate he was offered more to return as Bears DC, but declined. Now is Chargers LB coach making less with only 1 guaranteed year.
Reportedly, Norv Turner was going to be the Dallas head coach only if JJ would hire Rivera as DC.
Rivera told JJ in HC interview he would not take a DC job anywhere but Chicago....

Damn Jerry should have offered him the equipment manager job he would have jumped at that.

[Fonzie]

And Rivera would do this why? Because Lovie asked him too? That doesn't really make much sense to me. Are you saying Lovie fired him? If the Bears knew that was the reason, they would fire Lovie right now and re-hire Rivera as HC if that was the case. They could still do it. I just think for whatever reason, Lovie AND the Bears didn't want him anymore.

I'm not quite sure what you're asking here - Rivera's contract was up, and Lovie decided not to renew him. There was no firing involved.

It may well be that this had been the plan all along for the Bears (and PFT.com acknowledges that possibility), but the fact that this comes on the heels of the Bears' lowball offer for Lovie and the prospect of Rivera being tabbed to take his job next year led to the above speculation.

[Ksyrup]

From what I have read, there was clearly a difference of opinion between the Bears and Rivera as to has value to the organization. He wanted a big raise, and they privately told people that (a) it was Smith's D and he had little to do with it; (b) Babich will be just as good as a DC if Rivera is gone; and (c) they were much more worried about Ron Turner being plucked because they didn't have a ready replacement for him as OC.

Rivera obviously thought he was more valuable than the Bears did, so they both moved on. It happens.

[rkmsuf]

Who doesn't want to hook their wagon onto Norv Turner. Duh.

[14ers]

Rivera was unable to interview for any DC jobs for up to 3 monday's after the superbowl. So basically, he couldn't have taken a DC job at that point.
Why, If his contract expired this year?

Maybe he needs to look into getting another agent. He should of been looking at NFL Head coaching jobs, other teams DC jobs and even interviewing for college Head coaching jobs. This is what you are supposed to do when you are trying to get a bigger contract offer from your current team.


Does Rivera even have an agent, or was he trying to do this himself to save money?

[stevew]

Rivera's contract had technically lapsed. But according to league rules the Bears had an exclusivity period, for three Tuesdays following the Super Bowl, to negotiate a new deal with him. During that three-week window, Rivera could have been hired as a head coach by another franchise, but not as an assistant.

That window expires Tuesday, and sources said Bears officials had no intention of renewing Rivera's contract. It is believed that Rivera, who played linebacker for the Bears for nine seasons before embarking on a coaching career, earned $500,000 for the 2006 season. If that is the case, it likely put him at about the middle of the NFL's salary range for defensive coordinators.



From an ESPN article.

[Ksyrup]

My guess is that until recently, he felt that worst-case scenario, he'd be back with Chicago with a decent raise. Thus, he was only looking to better his situation (he thought) by concentrating on head coaching jobs. If he felt comfortable that things were going to work out with the Bears, it makes no sense to be considering lateral moves - and given the fact that he was DC on a SB team, even a lateral move could be considered a downward move.

There's a fine line between trying to better yourself and going out of your way to show your current employer how wanted you are. I think a logical argument could be made that you won't impress your boss by applying for every lateral job there is. They understood, no doubt, the opportunity a HC job would provide him. In fact, one of the articles foes so far as to suggest the Bears wanted him to get a HC job so they wouldn't have to let him go. And by the time things with Chicago took a turn for the worse, he was pretty much out of DC job options.

I think, if anything, he underestimated how expendable Chicago thought he was. But he was in a no-win situation, because actively looking for another DC job when he was trying to work things out with Chicago could have caused problems even earlier for him. But it sounds like they didn't do him a favor by telling him he was free to leave earlier than they did. Or maybe they did, and he thought it was a negotiating ploy. Woops.

[watravaler]

Rivera screwed the pooch. He was blessed with all-world talent at almost every position and this is the end-game? It doesn't really effect the Bears, as Smith/Babich are the brains behind the Bears cover 2.

[Logan]

From an ESPN article.

If the Bears really had no interest in bringing him back, kind of weak to hold him to that "exclusivity" period so he couldn't find a comparable job.

[JasonC23]

Bears fan here...I won't miss Rivera. The 4 biggest coaching games of his life (last year's playoff game vs Carolina, and the Super Bowl run this year) featured the following:

- 2 games in which a highly questionable (and that's putting it mildly) game plan assisted in spelling doom for the Bears (vs Carolina, Super Bowl).
- 1 game in which the weather conditions helped as much as any defensive game plan (vs Saints).
- 1 game in which a team known for overusing the draw play repeatedly ran the draw play because it kept working even though everyone in the building knew it was coming (vs Seahawks).

With Jerry Angelo picking out the defensive players and Lovie Smith around to coach them, I don't think a genius DC is needed on the Bears. What's needed is for the DC to not hamper the ability of the defense to win games. But that's exactly what Rivera did in at least half of his career playoff games.

Besides, as others have mentioned, how many times does he have to interview for a HC job before his organization says, "You know, if you really don't want to be here...don't be here. Goodbye."? Apparently the answer is 9.

[TroyF]

Bears fan here...I won't miss Rivera. The 4 biggest coaching games of his life (last year's playoff game vs Carolina, and the Super Bowl run this year) featured the following:

- 2 games in which a highly questionable (and that's putting it mildly) game plan assisted in spelling doom for the Bears (vs Carolina, Super Bowl).
- 1 game in which the weather conditions helped as much as any defensive game plan (vs Saints).
- 1 game in which a team known for overusing the draw play repeatedly ran the draw play because it kept working even though everyone in the building knew it was coming (vs Seahawks).

With Jerry Angelo picking out the defensive players and Lovie Smith around to coach them, I don't think a genius DC is needed on the Bears. What's needed is for the DC to not hamper the ability of the defense to win games. But that's exactly what Rivera did in at least half of his career playoff games.

Besides, as others have mentioned, how many times does he have to interview for a HC job before his organization says, "You know, if you really don't want to be here...don't be here. Goodbye."? Apparently the answer is 9.


Was ok until the last point. Interviewing for a head coaching job isn't about not wanting to be where you are, it's about wanting to run your own team. If you hold him to that standard, you may as well fire EVERYONE on your staff. If you think every other Bears assistent would be turning down head coaching job interviews, you are mistaken.

[JasonC23]

Was ok until the last point. Interviewing for a head coaching job isn't about not wanting to be where you are, it's about wanting to run your own team. If you hold him to that standard, you may as well fire EVERYONE on your staff. If you think every other Bears assistent would be turning down head coaching job interviews, you are mistaken.

I'm not saying that (at least I wasn't trying to). In my mind, there's a difference between having career aspirations (which of course most junior members of a staff will have) and shouting from the rooftops, "I'm only doing this until something better comes along! Please take me away!" To me, at least, Rivera's constant harping on wanting to be a head coach and moving beyond the Bears' DC job made me question whether he was really fully committed to his current job. And if team management had that same question (pure speculation here), I can fully understand why they would decline to renew his contract.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I'm not quite sure what you're asking here - Rivera's contract was up, and Lovie decided not to renew him. There was no firing involved.

It may well be that this had been the plan all along for the Bears (and PFT.com acknowledges that possibility), but the fact that this comes on the heels of the Bears' lowball offer for Lovie and the prospect of Rivera being tabbed to take his job next year led to the above speculation.

I equated firing to not extending a new contract to clear the first part up. All I was trying to say is there is nothing that Lovie Smith alone could do with Rivera to enhance his bargaining position because the owner has the last say. If Lovie doesn't want Rivera around to give him leverage, then the owner simply overrules him and offers Rivera a new contract to get the leverage back. That's why I believe this is clearly a decision by the owner and Lovie together. In fact, as I said also, the owner could hire Rivera in 3 weeks from now to replace Lovie Smith if it all falls apart. Being the SD LB coach does not prevent him from becoming the Chicago HC.

[hoopsguy]

Here is some of the speculation I have seen in Chicago on this topic:

- When Smith was hired by Angelo (both with Tampa ties) they wanted to bring in Bucs D-Line coach Marinelli. Tampa would not allow him to interview for the Bears D-Coordinator job
- McCaskey family and another guy in Bears personnel department backed Rivera as a secondary candidate after Marinelli fell through
- Smith and Rivera never really hit it off from a philosophical standpoint
- Rivera twice tried to bring in Leslie Frazier (ex-teammate in Chicago) as secondary coach and Smith blocked it both times
- Smith apparently does not enjoy the comparisons to the '85 Bears, and Rivera represents a link to those teams
- Smith apparently does not want to provide the ownership with additional bargaining power on his contract; Rivera would represent a palatable option to the Chicago masses who have seen the success on the defensive side of the ball and have fond memories of the '85 squad evoked by a linebacker from that team

The '85 thing sounds kinda far-fetched to me, but that has played on both the radio and in the column of a pretty respected Chicago NFL guy (Don Pierson). No matter how much this is true/BS, I do think that Rivera being gone means that Smith is nearing a contract extension. There is no reason for the Bears to acquiese to him on not extending Rivera if they are having any thoughts of bumping him to the head job if things go south with Smith's extension.

[dervack]

Lovie prefers the Cover-2 and his really good friend is now the D-coordinator.

Rivera prefers blitzing LBs most of the time in his defensive schemes.

[Ksyrup]

I'm not quite sure what you're asking here - Rivera's contract was up, and Lovie decided not to renew him. There was no firing involved.

It may well be that this had been the plan all along for the Bears (and PFT.com acknowledges that possibility), but the fact that this comes on the heels of the Bears' lowball offer for Lovie and the prospect of Rivera being tabbed to take his job next year led to the above speculation.

Technicalities aside, he was no longer wanted and, at least initially, that wasn't mutual. So I think you could term this a firing in a broad sense, contract or not.


Business or not, Ron Rivera's parting with the Bears was not his choice. The reality is that Rivera and the Bears would have parted company even if they had won the Super Bowl, sources have confirmed. The Rivera move wasn't about money. It was about power. No matter how the message is spun, sliced or diced, it came down to this: Lovie Smith fired Rivera.
-- Chicago Tribune