The Chicago Bears are poaching yet another coach from one of their division rivals.
The Bears are finalizing a deal to hire Antwaan Randle El as their new assistant head coach/wide receivers coach, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Randle El has served as the Detroit Lions’ wide receivers coach since 2021. This would give him a promotion to a role that includes assistant head coach duties.
The 45-year-old coach was known for his success as a player prior to going into coaching. Randle El was a dual-threat quarterback in college at Indiana. He became a second-round pick in the NFL and was a standout wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers for most of his career. He won a Super Bowl with the Steelers in the 2005 season. He also spent part of his career with Washington.
Prior to his time with the Lions, Randle El served as an offensive assistant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2019-2020.
The Bears made the big move when they hired Ben Johnson away from Detroit earlier this week. Randle El may not be the first coach Johnson is able to convince to leave Detroit to join him with the Bears.
As for the Lions, they will have several staff openings to fill, led by Johnson, Aaron Glenn, and apparently now Randle El too.
