According to the Chicago Tribune, Chargers’ assistant head coach Rob Chudzinski has dropped out of the running for the Bears’ offensive coordinator job.

As the article notes, Chud’s contract is expiring and word has it that San Diego wants to retain him. There’s a possibility that other teams may be pursuing him as well, so maybe he wants to keep his options open.

Whatever the situation is, this isn’t good news for the Bears. Jeremy Bates was GM Jerry Angelo’s first choice to replace Ron Turner as the offensive coordinator, but Bates is heading to Seattle to run the Seahawks’ offense under Pete Carroll. Angelo also missed out on Charlie Weis, who signed with the Chiefs, and Chudzinski becomes the latest assistant to steer clear of the “Windy City.”

The one logical candidate remaining is Mike Martz, who was linked to the Bears’ OC job a couple weeks ago. With Angelo running out of options, the mad scientist might be his last opportunity to hire a coordinator with experience. And with Chicago getting away from the running game now that Jay Cutler is under center, Martz might not be a bad fit.

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