Whether it’s a long line of great tight ends or impressive offensive linemen, Iowa has made its imprint on the professional level, and it also has some former coaches scattered about the NFL landscape.

Well, now, we can add another one to the list, as former Hawkeyes assistant Declan Doyle landed a job as offensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears earlier this offseason.

Doyle spent three years working under Kirk Ferentz as a student assistant between 2016 and 2018 before landing a job as an offensive assistant with the New Orleans Saints in 2019.

The Iowa City native then spent four seasons with the Saints before appropriately linking up with the Denver Broncos as their tight ends coach. Now, he has gotten one heck of a promotion with the Bears, where he will try and lead Caleb Williams and an intriguing cast of talent to prominence.

Just 28 years old, Doyle is one of the youngest coordinators in the league and will have a heck of a lot of pressure on him to produce results in Chicago, where the fan base is starving for success.

The Bears have made just two postseason appearances since 2011 and have not won a single playoff game throughout that span. They had high expectations heading into this past year, but were unable to deliver, finishing 5-12.

Williams was considered a generational talent by many heading into last year’s NFL Draft, and while he definitely showed flashes during his rookie campaign, Chicago’s brutal offensive line and shaky defense proved to be a big issue.

However, the Bears worked hard to repair their offensive line in free agency and via trades, and they also project to be a bit better defensively next season.

Of course, the biggest factor for Chicago is offense, which actually ranked last in the NFL in yardage in 2024. Williams being sacked 68 times didn’t help matters, and the Bears’ running game was unable to get anything going, either.

But now, Chicago has a new offensive-minded head coach in Ben Johnson, and Doyle will be helping him call the shots. It will definitely be a challenge for the Iowa product, especially considering he has very limited experience at this level.

We’ll see if Doyle can help the Bears reach new heights in 2025.