It’s been a few months since Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy met with the media. Not since their infamous “collaboration” session coming on the heels of the news they’d both be returning in 2021. A lot has happened since then. Good? Bad? That depends on who you ask. Now on Friday, April 2nd the Chicago Bears media will have a chance to ask the two men about everything.
One can imagine it’ll be aggressive and the answer received won’t be adequate. Pace and Nagy have a way of dodging straight answers this time of year. Still, there will be some intriguing nuggets to come out of what they saw. It comes down to what sort of questions they’ll be fielding. Here is a rundown of the most likely subjects to come up.
Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy have a lot of big questions coming
The Andy Dalton signing
It’s a virtual guarantee that the first question of the press conference will be about the new Bears quarterback. Mitch Trubisky is gone. Dalton arrived via a one-year deal for $10 million. The 33-year old quarterback then said he was told he’d be the starter in 2021. So it’ll be fascinating to hear what Pace and Nagy say on that. What were their thoughts when making him their primary target in free agency? Do they really believe he can get them back to the playoffs? Plenty of fans can’t wait to hear their reasoning.
Decision to release Kyle Fuller
Answers will be demanded about this one. Plenty of people were shocked the Bears chose to part ways with their Pro Bowl cornerback. Especially via outright release and not even a trade. Reports were they tried to get him to take a pay cut. That didn’t happen and no talks about an extension worked out either. So just like that the Bears lost their best defensive back for little more than some salary cap relief. Why him rather than somebody else like Jimmy Graham or even Akiem Hicks?
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
“The way he pushes guys gets the best out of them.”
Kyle Fuller on why he likes playing for Coach Fangio: pic.twitter.com/IVsiJsgw3U
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) March 25, 2021
Russell Wilson and drafting a quarterback
This is going to be a big one. It’s been well-documented that Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy need a quarterback. Rumors were rampant the past few weeks that the Bears made a furious run at trying to trade for the Seattle Seahawks star. When Wilson fell through, they moved on to Dalton. In the minds of many, that made it a virtual certainty they’ll be drafting a quarterback. This will lead to questions about the class, if they might consider trading up, and certain names they might have an eye on.
The safety position
This is a subject a lot of people keep forgetting but it’s an important one. Who will be starting next to Eddie Jackson on opening day. Right now the Bears have no answer to that. Tashaun Gipson left in free agency and remains unsigned. Deon Bush and DeAndre Houston-Carson were brought back on one-year deals but they’re widely viewed as reserves. Does Pace have another move in mind since there is no clear starter on the roster? Will it come in free agency or the draft? This isn’t the most important matter to discuss but it’ll be broached.