Anybody who follows NFL football has probably heard the name Albert Breer once or twice. The man works for Sports Illustrated at The MMQB and is respected as one of the top football insiders in the business. He is also somebody who seems to have decent ties to the Chicago Bears organization. Specifically regarding head coach Matt Nagy. The two have spoken a number of times and Breer seems to always have solid info on him.
That is what makes his most recent article interesting. In his mailbag, Breer was asked if Nagy is coaching afraid when it comes to the Bears offense. Perhaps an explanation for why his play calling has been inconsistent. Or awful depending on who you ask. Either way, they wanted to know if the possibility is there that the Bears head coach will pass the play sheet to somebody else.
Breer didn’t beat around the bush.
“I don’t think there’s an insecurity there. Nagy believes in his ability as a play-caller, and that’s part of the equation here.”
His assertion is the coach understands why he’s being criticized but internally the belief is the source of the problems lay elsewhere. What is that exactly? It should be pretty obvious to those who have watched this team for the past month.
“…I also think Nagy’s really good at that part of the job, despite the recent results. It’s no secret where the Bears’ biggest issue is right now, and that’s not even at quarterback—it’s what’s in front of the quarterback. If Chicago can’t get its line in order—and remember, the team fired O-line coach Harry Hiestand in December—then the rest won’t matter. So maybe they’ll add someone between now and next Tuesday.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVxzZhmOktI&ab_channel=ChicagoBears
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Matt Nagy can’t coach around a bad offensive line
Monday night was another low point for the Bears front. They allowed pressure on over 37% of Nick Foles’ dropbacks including four sacks. Not to mention the number of times defenders were getting into the backfield on running plays. There was zero push and just an overall passivity to the group. It was another reminder of how undermanned the line is.
Talent was a question mark coming into the season already. Their former star guard Kyle Long had effectively retired. Both tackles Charles Leno and Bobby Massie were average last year but their contracts made them all but immovable. Cody Whitehair is fine at center. Their best blocker was left guard James Daniels. So naturally, he tore his pec and was lost for the season.
This group just lacks ability. Not to mention leadership.
Long was undoubtedly the leader and tone-setter of that line for most of his tenure in Chicago. When he left, there was no other fiery presence to pick up the slack. No “a**-kicker” as the saying goes. That goes a long way in explaining why the Bears so often look like the team that’s getting pushed around.
Does this reality absolve Nagy of blame? Of course not. Good offensive coaches should recognize this and try to tailor the gameplan in a way that helps hide those weaknesses. Maybe a greater commitment to the run with high doses of play action. Similar to what the Rams do all the time. Or the San Francisco 49ers.
Neither team has particularly elite offensive lines but they function well because their coaches are able to work around their weaknesses. Matt Nagy hasn’t done that nearly enough. Until he starts to, the odds are people will remain on his case about the play calling. The voices will get louder too. He better be prepared for the consequences.