With the end of an Era, it took Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Pace all of a week to usher in a new one.
We know he likes to move quickly and enjoys a proverbial “sleight of hand” approach to how he operates in competitive spaces. With that being said, today, Pace pulls off another “made you look” play and Bears fans everywhere thought John DeFilippo was going to become the next head coach.
Instead: Matt Nagy, the now former offensive coordinator of the Kansas City Chiefs is your 16th Chicago Bears Head Coach.
Nagy, 39 years old, oversaw a Kansas City offense that was fifth in the NFL and featured a quarterback in Alex Smith who had over 4,000 yards passing with 26 touchdowns, and only five interceptions. This high-powered offense wasn’t number one because Andy Reid called plays for part of the season (should be noted that rumors say he took the play-calling back from Nagy in the WildCard game this past weekend as well).
Having a running back in Kareem Hunt who was the league’s leading rusher and swiss-army knife receiver Tyreek Hill eclipsing 1,000 yards all showed Nagy’s promise.
Former Philadelphia Eagles Exec and ESPN’s Louis Riddick showered Nagy with praise stating “… He is a guy who is just A+ across the board. He has a tremendous amount of energy and I think the Bears might have hit a home run with him.”
The question now becomes: Who will his coaching staff be?
Will Nagy go and grab ex-Raiders offensive coordinator Todd Downing? Will beloved Vic Fangio stay in Chicago? At this party, it would definitely be icing on the cake.
Don’t worry though, we will start to get some answers shortly as Bears fans wait with tip-toe anticipation.
I enjoy Nagy.
He understands how to play to the strengths of his offense, and the biggest difference between him and coaches prior to now is that he attacks opponents versus taking what’s given (this is very different than the way the Bears have played in recent memory).
At the same time, he personally has the same, very crispy chip on his shoulder as the players because he feels he should’ve gotten a shot to play at the highest level. I think a driven leader with proven results should breed confidence amongst the Bears’ faithful.
Nagy will definitely modernize Chicago’s offensive system, and winning definitely helps culture.
Could the Chicago Bears be finally coming of age?
If so, this sweet 16th coach will demand a party that goes far beyond this year as we have the rite of passage into “sustainable success”.
Great article , very well written. Would love more from this guy!