When an offense struggles, everybody gets blamed. Few more so than the offensive coordinator. Luke Getsy understood that when he accepted the job with the Chicago Bears. He knew he was walking into a tough situation with a young quarterback and a depth chart very much in flux. He didn’t complain, to his credit. He merely stated that getting this thing turned around would be a process. Not a pretty one, mind you.
Still, when you’re in charge of the worst passing attack in the NFL, that will inevitably lead to criticism. Many people think he’s done a poor job helping Fields with play-calling and not finding ways to protect his quarterback. Film analyst Nate Tice of The Athletic doesn’t see it that way. He thinks Getsy understands his situation perfectly. It has nothing to do with stubbornness or stupidity. His approach is out of pure necessity. Tice explained this to colleague Adam Jahns.
“Someone who seems to know the talent level of his offense. The Bears have been running plenty of zone runs and bootlegs, run and pass concepts that raise the floor of your offense. Understanding that the best skill players available are his running backs and attempting to help out his blockers in any way he can by keeping things simple.”
Luke Getsy sees the same weaknesses as everybody else.
He knows the offensive line isn’t equipped to pass protect on a regular basis. He knows the wide receiving corps is lacking high-end talent. It would be malpractice of him to still ask Fields to chuck it 35-40 times every week. The best thing Chicago can do is run the football. They’re 6th in total rushing attempts and 7th in yards per attempt. David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert have done well. Fields has also contributed a ton with his scrambling ability.
Remember that Luke Getsy was a wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator before arriving in Chicago. He probably wants to throw the ball as much as anybody. However, he can’t let those urges dictate his decision-making. It must be about what the Bears can do best and stick close to that. Have an identity. That was the problem that always haunted Matt Nagy. He was dead set on throwing the ball even when the team couldn’t do so.
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At least Getsy shows some common sense.
