The mentality that new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen plans to bring to the Bears is in keeping with the team’s storied history as “Monsters of the Midway.”
“We want to be an attacking, aggressive style of defense,” Allen said Thursday during an introductory Zoom press conference.
“We want to take the fight to the offense and not let the offense dictate the tempo to us. We’re going to be aggressive. We’re going to challenge everything. We’re going to play the game the right way. We’re going to play a tough, physical brand of football—the brand of football that you come to expect at the Chicago Bears.”
Allen, 52, boasts 23 seasons of NFL experience, including six as a head coach (with the Raiders from 2012-14 and Saints from 2022-24) and eight as a defensive coordinator (with the Broncos in 2011 and Saints from 2015-21). In 14 seasons in New Orleans, he helped win six NFC South titles and a Super Bowl championship in 2009.
Allen revealed that new Bears coach Ben Johnson had reached out to him late in the 2024 season to see if he would consider being his defensive coordinator should Johnson be offered a head-coaching position.
“When Ben asked me if I would be interested, there were a couple of places that I felt like had the pieces in place to potentially be a really good football team, and Chicago was one of them,” Allen said. “So, I was excited when it came about that this was a job that he really wanted, and I was excited to come along with him.”
Allen is intrigued by pieces at all three levels of the Bears defense.
“There are some things that we have in the secondary that I like,” he said. “There are some pieces at linebacker that I’m encouraged by. There are a couple spots up front where we’ve got some players. So I think the foundation is there defensively.”
Asked specifically about the secondary, Allen lauded the size and length at cornerback as well as the versatility at safety, but he mentioned only one individual by name.
“Kyler Gordon is an outstanding nickel player,” Allen said. “I have a vision for how we can utilize him. I think the foundation for what we want to do is there, and then I’m just excited about finally getting these guys in here and us having the opportunity to work with them and see exactly what we have. And then we have to be creative with how we want to do things.”
While Allen vows to employ an attacking, aggressive defense, it’s too early to say how much the Bears will blitz.
“That all remains to be seen,” Allen said. “We’ll get all the guys in here. We’ll figure out what we need to do. But I think Ben in his press conference made a great point, that this has become a quarterback-driven league. I mean that’s what this league is, so I think everything that we do is going to be based on, ‘How do we affect the quarterback?’ And you affect the quarterback through rush and coverage, and that’s the pinnacle of what team defense is all about.”
Allen is eager to work with Johnson, who was a top head-coaching candidate after three highly successful seasons as Lions offensive coordinator. In their last head-to-head matchup Dec. 3, 2023, in New Orleans, Detroit raced to a 21-0 lead in the first 6:45 of the game en route to a 33-28 victory.
“Just facing the offense, the creativity of the offense, the way that he’s able to utilize all of his assets and get him in the best position to have success, I was always really intrigued with how he was able to do that,” Allen said. “In terms of the guy, I knew that he was going to be a grinder, a hard worker, tireless, and I knew that he had a clear vision of what he wanted this team to look like. And I think that aligns with kind of what I think we should be, how this team should be and in particular how I want this defense to be.”
As someone who became a first-time head coach after serving as a coordinator, Allen can help Johnson make the same transition this season.
“I’d say my job is to use all the experience that I have to help him be as successful as he can be,” Allen said. “I don’t look at it as my job is to go in there and tell him what I think he needs to do. My job is to be a sounding board for him. If he’s got questions, if he’s got things that he wants to run by me, I’ll be glad to give him my opinion. But in my experience with him, I’m excited about this opportunity for him. He’s fully prepared and fully capable of doing an outstanding job, and whatever he needs me to do, I’ll be here to try to help him in any way I can.”
