Bears fans may see their future head coach on the opposing sideline Sunday when the Detroit Lions come to Solider Field, armed with a 12-2 record and two coordinators who will be sought after during this upcoming hiring cycle.

Ben Johnson runs a Lions attack ranked first in scoring and second in total offense. Aaron Glenn orchestrates a Detroit defense that ranks seventh in scoring and 14^th in total defense despite having a massive list of impact players on injured reserve, headlined by edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson.

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Johnson is known as an excellent offensive play caller and play designer. Glenn’s no slouch in schematics but has received tons of credit for his leadership keeping a beat-up unit together while helping win games.

It’s easy to imagine the Bears interviewing both coordinators next month for a head-coaching vacancy created by Matt Eberflus’ in-season firing.

Both guys are deserving of such a post, and may well find themselves leading the Bears in 2025. These names aren’t new to Chicago considering the NFC North rivalry and their stays in current roles, but they can be viewed Sunday through a different lens with the Eberflus firing now official.

There’s no doubt Bears ownership, president Kevin Warren and GM Ryan Poles will be taking mental notes. While the body of work is obviously most important, seeing people work live provides a different dimension.

Johnson might be the most coveted prospective candidate on the market and sure seems like a good fit for the Bears, who need a mentor and team leader to pair with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, this year’s No. 1 overall draft pick.

He’ll be popular among several teams and has a unique leverage point most coordinators with no head coaching experience don’t have. He could just go back to Detroit. He was a candidate for two cycles without leaving Lions. He was popular one last year, yet withdrew his candidacy after taking several interviews.

Johnson was asked about the prospects of taking a head coaching job, and he’s definitely interested.

“I’m much more prepared than I was the last two years,” Johnson said, in an answer to a question from Chicago Sun-Times reporter Patrick Finley, who was in Allen Park, Mich., on Thursday. “The local media has been gracious on me by not bringing it up all year long.

“…Last couple years in the coordinator role, things get thrown on you fast and you don’t have time to think about the future a whole lot. Now that I’ve been through the wringer a couple of times and have been on some interviews, I feel more prepared from a big picture standpoint.

Johnson then said he’s focused on the “here and now,” and owes that to the Lions players and coaches who are striving for a championship, which he badly wants as well.

But, however, Johnson couldn’t deny that a head-coaching gig is intriguing.

“There’s a burning desire in every man to find what he’s made out of, to push the limits and see if he’s got what it takes,” Johnson said in his Thursday press conference. “So, there’s a fire there. When that time is, I don’t know when that will be, but there’s certainly a fire there.”

Glenn wasn’t asked about coaching prospects, but he has the playing and coaching pedigree to be worthy of a head-coaching gig. If we’re going to keep this Bears focused, it seems more likely an offensive mind is coming to Chicago, but Glenn could sweep the Bears off their feet, especially with the right OC in mind.

Glenn certainly thinks highly of Williams after facing him once and seeing him play a ton on tape.

“He’s very resilient,” Glenn said. “There’s no quit in that player. It’s funny that the narrative that so many people want to put on someone when they don’t really know who they are, that’s funny to me and it happens to a lot of young quarterbacks in this league. …

“I think (Williams is a damn good player. He has a lot of talent and he has talent around him. He’s going to have to continue to learn and grow.”

Johnson was asked if Williams had a skill set prospective head coaches would find appealing.

“It’s been hard to sit down and study every throw, but I’ve seen plenty of crossover tape over the course of the year and there’s no question this guy is talented,” Johnson said. “I remember standing on the sideline last game, and you could just hear the ball whistle by you. He’s got quite a fast ball, and has some creativity to him. He can extend plays and is accurate down the field as well. Like I said, I haven’t really (dived) in or can tell you much more beyond that, but he has been impressive from afar.”