Although the offseason is not officially close to being over, teams have already looking ahead to their preparations for the 2018 NFL season. The last few months saw some notable changes, especially at the head coaching position.

Fortunately, the NFL allows its new head coaches to get an early start on their offseason workouts. According to Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk, the Arizona Cardinals and Chicago Bears will be taking full advantage by beginning this week:

Teams with new coaches can start their offseason workout programs this week, and the Cardinals and Bears will be the first to report, with Steve Wilks and Matt Nagy getting their teams to work tomorrow after the holiday weekend.

The decision to get an early start should hardly come as any surprise. Both Steve Wilks and Matt Nagy are making their head coaching debuts next season. That said, it makes sense that they would use up any time they have to prepare.

Both coaches have their work cut out for them moving forward. Although the Cardinals are expecting to contend for the playoffs next season, they have done little to improve their roster to help them compete in a suddenly formidable NFC West Division. Meanwhile, the Bears are coming off a disastrous five-win campaign and have spent most of this offseason erasing last year's mistakes with player contracts.

There are a number of other teams that have permission to get an early start as well, such as the Detroit Lions, New York Giants, and Oakland Raiders. However, it seems they will kick off next week while the rest of the league is allowed to begin on April 16.