LAKE FOREST, IL – The Chicago Bears reached an agreement with Mike Martz today, making him their offensive coordinator.
Martz has 17 years of NFL coaching experience, including six as a head coach and four as an offensive coordinator. Martz most recently worked as offensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers in 2008. In San Francisco, Martz improved a passing offense that ranked last in the NFL a year earlier to 13th in 2008. The 49ers also improved in total yards per game (32nd to 23rd), yards per play (32nd to 18th) and points per game (32nd to 22nd).

Prior to his time in San Francisco, Martz spent two seasons (2006-07) as the offensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions.

The 4,216 passing yards by the Lions in 2007 and the 4,208 in 2006 rank second and third, respectively, in franchise single-season annals.  From 2000-05, Martz was head coach of the St. Louis Rams after spending one season as the team’s offensive coordinator (1999). During his time with the Rams, Martz led St. Louis to five playoff appearances, four 10-win seasons, three division titles, two Super Bowl appearances and one world championship (Super Bowl XXXIV).

During the 1999 season, the Rams led the NFL in total points, total yards and passing yards after finishing 24th, 27th and 22nd in each respective category a year earlier. St. Louis also ranked fifth in rushing yards per game and second in yards per carry while Martz was offensive coordinator after ranking 29th and 28th in each category, respectively, in 1998.
Martz was the Rams quarterbacks coach in 1994 while the team was in Los Angeles after starting his NFL career with the organization as an offensive assistant (1992-93).

He started his coaching career at Bullard High School in Fresno, California in 1973 before moving on to San Diego Mesa (1974, ’76-77). In between his two stints at San Diego Mesa, Martz spent one season at San Jose State. In 1978 he was an assistant at Santa Ana College before moving on to Fresno State in 1979. Martz spent two seasons at the University of Pacific (1980-81) and one at the University of Minnesota (1982) before spending eight seasons at Arizona State as the Sun Devils quarterbacks/receivers coach (1983, ’86-87) and offensive coordinator (1984, ’88-91).