Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is known for being a tough grader. He’s like the chemistry teacher in high school that’s almost impossible to get an A from. To do so requires maximum effort and a near-perfect performance. Fangio is never one to let his players get comfortable. He always feels they can get better. Perhaps that’s one of the key reasons why cornerback Kyle Fuller has flourished this season.
The former first round pick was a mixed bag in their first two years together. He had some good and ugly performances in 2015. Then 2016 was lost due to a knee injury. Most people, including Fangio, had no idea what to expect from Fuller at the start of 2017. What they got was a Pro Bowl-caliber year.
Fuller was often dominant this season. He’s got 65 tackles, two interceptions and 22 passes defended with one game left to play. Not even that explains how effective he’s been at times for that defense. Enough to impress his coordinator though? Well maybe a little.
Vic Fangio explains how Kyle Fuller has done so well this year
#Bears DC Vic Fangio on CB Kyle Fuller: "I think he's come back with more purpose."
— Zach Zaidman (@ZachZaidman) December 28, 2017
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Fangio explains here that it was never a question of ability with Fuller. Being a top 15 draft choice he always had the talent. The big divide for him was playing with greater confidence in himself. To truly apply his entire mentality to getting better. Anybody who has watched Fuller this season can clearly see a young player who is carrying himself with a greater swagger and competitiveness than any time before.
So much in fact that Fangio couldn’t help but troll his young understudy a bit. He explained it through a story about what happened when they spent time together during the off-season.
#Bears DC Vic Fangio joked about the one-on-one time he spent with CB Kyle Fuller in the offseason: "I know he didn't enjoy getting beat in golf."
— Zach Zaidman (@ZachZaidman) December 28, 2017
Ouch. Telling the entire Chicago media that you basically owned one of your players in a round of golf. That’s ice cold. Then again Fangio has never minded the occasional barb at his players if he thinks it will motivate them further. This of course is just some harmless teasing, a sign of the strong relationship the two have. It’s also further proof that the Bears should try to do everything in their power to keep Fangio around.
His contract is set to expire this January, as is Fuller’s. Being able to retain the coordinator might go a long way towards convincing the cornerback to stick around as well. It will be interesting to see how Pace plays it.
