The Chicago Bears were dealt a bit of a deathblow to their 2021 season last Sunday. The beat-up and desperate San Francisco 49ers came into Soldier Field and whipped the Bears in the second half to shock the Bears, 33-22. It was Chicago’s first game without head coach Matt Nagy, who sat out due to COVID-19 protocols.
Thread: Some thoughts after 49ers-Bears…
1. Getting torched by Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady is understandable. Having no answers for Jimmy Garoppolo is unacceptable.
Granted, the Bears' defense was banged up. But Sean Desai's shine is starting to wear off.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 1, 2021
The good news was QB Justin Fields looked good against a non-Detroit Lions team. As the narratives (and goal posts) for the 2021 season shift with that 49ers loss, Fields’ development is now front and center. That’s all that matters.
Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy are certainly on the hottest seats imaginable. The likelihood they return is low. But they can still help themselves for the future if Fields develops by season-end, and that would also set the Bears up for future success.
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Last Sunday was a breath of fresh air in terms of progress.
With that, let’s reach into this week’s Bears Mailbag. Follow me on Twitter @DhruvKoul to continue the conversation.
Bears Mailbag
If your the owner do you fire pace or keep him
— brown excellence (@OLRiveraUSMC) November 2, 2021
The reality is the McCaskeys love Ryan Pace. They absolutely adore him. They don’t want to fire him (or Matt Nagy, for that matter). But they may not have a choice on the latter.
The former, though, there is a choice. They can separate his role from general manager and elevate his title to overall VP or something of Football Operations. Pace could then hire the GM who would then make a decision on the head coach, roster, salary cap, etc.
It’d be the best of both worlds for the Bears — fans get that layer of separation between Pace and direct control of the roster, and the McCaskeys get to keep Pace in town.
Frankly, I would support that move. The Bears need that level of separation anyway — and a structure change in the way they’re aligned in the organization. Having Pace there would be a good thing.
He’s done great work with Halas Hall renovations, instituted a nutrition program that has kept the Bears relatively healthy the last few seasons, and in general improved from a football personnel standpoint.
He has value — and it would make sense to elevate him.
We’ll see if that’s what the McCaskeys decide to do.
I still it think it depends on how the team looks (play-wise) at season's end.
But at this point, I'd venture to guess at least Nagy and his staff are out. Pace is also in danger, but there are other things ownership can do with him, like separate his title from GM.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
Yes, there are several interesting decisions to make on key players next year:
Trevathan, Nichols, Daniels, Roquan, EJax, Whitehair, Mack, Quinn, etc.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
OC and DC are really dependent on the HC hire, but for DC, if Sean Desai doesn't stay, I'd love to see them bring Vic Fangio back if he gets fired in Denver.
My HC favorites are Kellen Moore and Brian Daboll.
GM is tougher to say — perhaps Will McClay from Dallas.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
He called plays for a few games, but the biggest intrigue point was taking Alex Smith (game manager) and turning him into an effective downfield passer. Not to mention, the intrigue that came from Patrick Mahomes' first start in Week 17.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
There are some who just likely won't return (A-Rob, Hicks, maybe even Nichols).
I'd imagine Trevathan is cut.
And the Bears have key decisions to make on guys like Quinn, Mack, Jackson, Goldman.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
The play calling did change slightly — with a larger emphasis on play-action than past weeks.
But the reality is all of those plays were put into the plan *during* the week, when Nagy was still involved.
The players said they missed his sideline presence, but Tabor did fine.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
He's eligible to return in terms of league rules, but he's still not healthy enough to return fully to practice yet.
It's getting difficult to imagine a return this season.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 3, 2021
