Dan Roushar enters his first season with the Bears in 2025.
Entering his 41st season in the coaching profession, Roushar will lead the offensive line group for Chicago. Prior to joining the Bears, Roushar spent the last two seasons as the offensive line coach at Tulane University, which followed a 10-year stretch with the New Orleans Saints. Over his coaching tenure, Roushar has held the role of offensive coordinator on five separate occasions, and in his final two seasons with the Saints, oversaw the run game coordination for New Orleans' offense. Over his five seasons leading the Saints' offensive line (2016-20), New Orleans claimed NFC South Division titles on four occasions.
Roushar spent the last two seasons leading the offensive line unit at Tulane University (2023-24), a two-year span that helped the Green Wave reach the AAC Championship Game each season, totaling 20 wins over the two-year stretch. In his first season at Tulane, the Green Wave reached 11 wins, marking the first occurrence of back-to-back double-digit win seasons in program history.
Prior to Tulane, Roushar spent 10 seasons with the Saints, which included a five-year tenure as offensive line coach and a timeline that featured the responsibilities of running backs coach, tight ends coach and run game coordinator. During his five seasons as Offensive Line Coach, the Saints owned one of the highest-ranking offensive units in the NFL, ranking No. 1 in the NFL in scrimmage yards per game (399.8) with the highest points per game average in the league (29.5).
Over his final two seasons with the Saints, Roushar oversaw the run game for the offense, while also guiding a tight end group that featured Juwan Johnson, who led New Orleans with a career-high seven receiving touchdowns in 2022. Roushar was impactful in Johnson's transition from wide receiver to tight end. In 2020, Roushar coached what continued to be one of the NFL's most stable offensive lines under his supervision. With the help of Roushar and the offensive coaching staff, the Saints rushed for a franchise-record and NFL-high 30 touchdowns, tied for the then-sixth-highest NFL total all-time, ranked sixth in rushing yards per game (141.6), ranking No. 4 in the league in scoring offense (29.7). Under Roushar's guidance, the offensive line blocked for RB Alvin Kamara, who led the NFL with a franchise-record 21 total touchdowns, while leading the team in both rushing and receiving with a career-high 1,688 total yards from scrimmage. Roushar's unit in 2019 surrendered just 25 sacks, third-fewest in the league, as quarterbacks Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater combined to throw for 36 touchdowns and only six interceptions.
Roushar led a 2018 unit that led the NFL with 26 rushing touchdowns. Despite being forced to use nine different starting offensive linemen due to injuries, the Saints allowed just 20 sacks under Roushar's guidance, second-best in the NFL. The offensive line allowed just 20 sacks in 2017, second-fewest in the NFL, even though it opened with six different lineups. Roushar's group played an instrumental role as the Saints were the only offense in the NFL to finish top-five in both rushing and passing, ranking No. 2 in total offense (391.2 yards per game). The 3,094 combined total yards from scrimmage from Mark Ingram and Kamara was second-most by an NFL running back duo since the start of a 16-game season (1978). The 4,339 combined total yards from scrimmage by Ingram, Kamara and WR Michael Thomas, was the highest total by a skill position trio in Saints history.
In Roushar's first season leading the offensive line (2016), the Saints were the No. 1 total offense (426.0 yards per game) and top-ranked passing offense (317.1 yards per game) in the NFL. New Orleans produced the second-most points per game average (29.3), Behind the blocking, Brees set a then-NFL single-season record in completions (471) and led the league in passing yardage (5,208), earning a Pro Bowl selection. The line also paved the way for Ingram to surpass the 1,000-yard mark for the first time.
Roushar started with the Saints as running backs coach in 2013, holding that role for two seasons. In his first season with New Orleans, running backs Pierre Thomas (77) and Darren Sproles (71) became the first running back duo in franchise history to secure at least 70 receptions in the same season, as Thomas' output led all NFL players at their position, propelling the Saints to a No. 4 ranking in total offense in 2013 (399.4 yards per game). The following season, Roushar was instrumental in the rushing offense moving from 25th in the NFL to 13th, as Ingram was selected to the first Pro Bowl of his career behind 964 rushing yards and nine rushing scores. After tutoring the running backs from 2013-14, Roushar moved to tight ends coach in 2015, as the Saints finished the season with the second-ranked offense in the NFL (403.8 yards per game). Under Roushar's guidance, TE Benjamin Watson set career-highs in both receptions (74) and receiving yardage (825) and tied a career-best in receiving touchdowns (six).
Before his decade with the Saints, Roushar spent six seasons at Michigan State University (2007-12), the final two as offensive coordinator/tight ends coach. In his final season with the Spartans, Roushar coordinated an offense that featured RB Le'Veon Bell, who would claim the Big Ten Conference's rushing title with 1,793 yards on the ground, the second-most in program history, en route to earning All-America honors. In Roushar's first season as coordinator (2011), Michigan State averaged 31.0 points per game, which ranked third in the conference, and school records for most points (434) and passing yards (3,535), while finishing second in net yardage (5,466). Prior to his promotion to coordinator, Roushar served four seasons as the Spartans' offensive line coach. In four seasons coaching the Michigan State front, Roushar's linemen earned All-Big Ten recognition on eight occasions. Prior to his time in East Lansing, Roushar spent two years as the offensive line coach at the University of Cincinnati (2005-06).
Following two seasons as a quarterback at Northern Illinois University (1982-93), Roushar aided the Huskies as a student assistant in 1984, before a seven-year stretch at Butler University (1986-92), capped by a four-season tenure as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. Roushar would then hold roles at the University of Rhode Island (1993), Ball State University (1994) and the University of Illinois (1995-96, 2003-04). Between his two stints at Illinois, Roushar returned to his alma mater, Northern Illinois, where he spent six seasons, the final five of which were as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.
