Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams resigned Wednesday, citing unspecified health reasons. Williams has been in the NFL since 2001, working for five teams in various positions.
“I am taking a step back to take care of my health and family,” Williams said in a statement. “I appreciate the opportunity to work with the Chicago Bears, a storied NFL franchise with a rich history.”
A one-sentence statement from the Bears was similarly nondescript, and all that is known is that Williams intends to return to football at some point in the future. His Chicago attorney, Andrew M. Stroth, told ESPN that the coach is leaving the Bears on good terms.
“He has tremendous respect for the Bears organization and he just thought it was the time to handle this health issue and his personal matters,” Stroth said.
After coaching at William & Mary from 1995 to 2000, Williams made his NFL coaching debut in 2001, when he worked as a defensive assistant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He only stayed for a single season before becoming the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive backs coach. He remained with the Colts until 2011 and returned for another stint in the same position between 2018 and 2021. In between his Colts tenures, he was briefly the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive coordinator in 2012 and 2013 and also worked as a defensive backs coach for the Detroit Lions.
Williams’ resignation puts the Bears further on the back foot, as most of the team’s struggles so far have come as a result of a stagnant offense. Quarterback yes has not yet lived up to his status as the aspiring franchise quarterback and the team has lost two games to begin 2023. Now the team must carry on without its defensive coordinator, who tried and failed to keep Chicago in contention against the Packers and Buccaneers.
Until the Bears find a permanent replacement for Williams, head coach Matt Eberflus will call plays on defense.
