The Bears desire to continue emphasizing the wide zone running scheme is apparent from the early Bears offensive coordinator candiates.
The second candidate to be reported as being sought for an interview, this by ESPN's Jermey Fowler, is 49ers passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak.
Kubiak, 36, doesn't have the extended coordinator experience that the other candidate has, Seattle offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. Kubiak has been an offensive coordinator for only one season.
Like with the other candidate, Shane Waldron, Kubiak has long ties to the wide zone blocking scheme.
In fact, in Kubiak's case it's even more apparent than with Waldron because Kubiak is the son of former Texans and Broncos coach Gary Kubiak, who was there on Mike Shanahan's Broncos staff when the blocking scheme first was popularized. The Bears began using this extensively two seasons ago when Luke Getsy brought it with his offense and line coach Chris Morgan taught it. Morgan remains with the Bears coaching staff after most of the offensive coaches have been fired.
Gary Kubiak's coaching career started with Texas A&M in quality control, then for two years with the Vikings in the same capacity beginning in 2013.
In 2016 Kubiak joined his father's Broncos staff as an offensive assistant and stayed there three years before going to the Minnesota Vikings as quarterbacks coach for two years and the 2021 season as offensive coordinator, his first time in that capacity.
The Vikings were 12th on offense, 11th at passing and 26th in rushing in his one season as coordinator under Mike Zimmer. He went back to Denver for one season as passing game coordinator/QB coach under Nathaniel Hackett and then went to the 49ers this year as the passing game coordinator.
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