The Chicago Bears are coming off a disappointing 5-12 season and improvement will rest on a new coaching staff. Ben Johnson comes over after leading the Detroit Lions' high-powered offense the past three seasons, and expectations are high paired with former No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams. If they succeed, they could make Bears fans forget about some of the coaching flops of the past that have included Matt Nagy and Matt Eberflus.
While Bears fans would rather forget about those years, a member of those staffs found his way into the news on Wednesday. After spending some time out of the league and returning to the NFL this season, he’s finally found a new job for 2025, and it just happens to be with a Super Bowl contender.
Former Bears Assistant Mark DeLeone Lands Job with Chiefs
Former Bears assistant coach Mark DeLeone was named the assistant running backs coach for the Kansas City Chiefs on Wednesday. His hiring comes after assistant special teams coach Andy Hill announced his retirement and continues a tour of the NFL since breaking into the league with the New York Jets as a defensive assistant in 2012.
With Andy Hill’s retirement, Porter Ellett has moved to assistant special teams coach for Dave Toub. Mark DeLeone, former linebackers coach for the Chiefs, returns to KC and takes over Ellett’s old role as assistant RB coach.
— Matt Derrick (@mattderrick) June 11, 2025
DeLeone spent one season with the Jets before beginning his first season with the Chiefs in 2013. He worked his way up the ladder on Andy Reid’s staff, getting promoted to assistant linebackers coach in 2016 and inside linebackers coach in 2018 before arriving in Chicago as a member of Nagy’s staff in 2019. He spent two years in Chicago before joining Dan Campbell’s staff with the Detroit Lions and was fired after the 2021 season.
After a brief return to the collegiate ranks as a defensive analyst with the Kansas Jayhawks, DeLeone returned to the NFL as the inside linebackers coach with the Baltimore Ravens before it was announced he would not return in January.
While DeLeone has been all over the league since his time in Chicago, the Bears current staff is hoping to make it a long-term home. With big expectations, Johnson isn’t backing down from the challenge and hopes to help Chicago compete in the NFC North next season.