Chicago Bears DC Chuck Pagano not motivated by head coach return
Friday 25 January 2019 08:47, UK
New Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano has insisted he is not motivated by the prospect of becoming an NFL head coach again.
Pagano was unveiled by the Bears on Thursday having been hired to replace Vic Fangio, who was hired by the Denver Broncos as head coach.
Having been the Indianapolis Colts' head coach from 2012 to 2017, Pagano interviewed for the Broncos vacancy as well as for the top job with the Green Bay Packers, who hired Matt LaFleur.
"I'm not. I've done it," Pagano said. "I'm motivated to just help [head] coach Matt Nagy be successful. Help this organization be successful. Help these kids grow and develop.
"That's my motivation is to be the best I can be for this organization, for the McCaskey family, for Coach Nagy and for these players and for these coaches and help develop these guys. That's the only thing I want to do."
Pagano spent the 2018 season out of coaching after being fired by the Colts, with whom he went 53-43 across six seasons.
Although he interviewed for the Broncos and Packers openings, the 58-year-old admitted there are aspects of the head coaching role that he does not miss.
"There's many times when I was sitting in that chair, you know, I said, 'Boy, I wish I was a defensive coordinator again. Man do I wish I was a secondary coach,'" Pagano said.
"It wasn't nothing to do with coaching. It wasn't nothing to do with the football part of it. It's just some of the other stuff that comes with it."
Pagano has just one year of NFL coordinator experience - 2011 with the Baltimore Ravens - after spending three years as the Ravens' secondary coach from 2008-10.
In Chicago, he takes over a unit that finished first in points allowed and third in yards allowed this season.
Pagano expects a relatively seamless transition, as the players will have some familiarity with the schemes he's run in the past.
"There's a lot of carryover," Pagano said.
"I come from a 3-4 background and system, so we're not going to try to jam square pegs into round holes.
"There is a ton of talent here. They've built one heck of a roster."
