The Chicago Bears endured a number of tense moments as the 1st round of the 2021 draft unfolded. It started at #3 overall with San Francisco. Which quarterback were they taking? That turned out to be Trey Lance. Then Atlanta at #4. Would they take a QB? Nope. Tight end Kyle Pitts. It went on like this for almost two hours. All the while everybody in Halas Hall were praying for just one thing. Don’t take Justin Fields. No person did it with more genuine emotion than Matt Nagy.
How badly did the Bears head coach want the Ohio State quarterback? Remember his team slogan from back in 2018, ‘Be Obsessed’? That should give you a good idea of his feeling on Fields. It was something that had been building for over a year. Ever since his good friend Ryan Day, Ohio State’s head coach, tipped him off that the quarterback was something special. Nagy kept apprised of Fields since then and the love affair only grew with time. When the NFL draft came into view, Nagy was smitten.
He wanted Fields. Nobody else would do.
That put a lot of pressure on GM Ryan Pace. He too loved Fields but he also knew the reality of the Bears’ situation. They were at 20th overall. Landing the quarterback would require a big move up the board and also a number of other teams to not take him. The odds were incredibly long in his estimation. Nagy didn’t care. Find a way to make it happen.
The moment of truth came when New York went on the clock at #11. Director of player personnel Joey Laine called the Giants to ask if they still had a deal from negotiations made earlier. Adam Jahns of The Athletic revealed what happened next.
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“Joey looks at me and gives me the thumbs-up,” Pace said. “And he says, ‘We got a deal.’”
There was still more to do. Laine called the trade into the NFL. The Giants did the same. The NFL provided confirmation, and the Bears were on the clock.
Pace turned to Nagy: “We’re getting Justin Fields.”
Nagy screamed out of happiness and excitement. Pace remembered hearing a swear word or two. Chicago’s brain trust shared fist bumps and bro hugs. It was a party.
“The moment just feels surreal,” Pace said. “It’s out of body.”
That pretty much tells the story. Too often the draft has been filled with disappointments for the Bears at the quarterback position. How many times have they wanted somebody who always seemed just out of reach? Not this time. Fields was their guy going into the draft. Through a mix of daring and some good luck, they found a way to get him. Nagy’s reaction is a perfect encapsulation of it all.
The elation of Matt Nagy can be seen in his interviews
Seriously, watch all of the ones he’s conducted since the end of the draft. The man isn’t even trying to hide the smile on his face. He genuinely feels the Bears got their quarterback. Somebody with superstar potential. For somebody who’s been saddled with Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles during most of his previous three-year run? It’s easy to understand why he is a wee bit excited.
That being said, the head coach is no fool. The real work has only just begun. Landing Fields was the first part of the plan. Now it falls to Matt Nagy and his staff to develop the kid into what he could be and should be. A lot of people aren’t buying him as a true offensive mind. Most of that due to the struggles Trubisky and Foles went through the past two years. Is he really the guy to trust with Fields’ crucial first years of development?
Plenty of critics don’t think so.
So this coming next few months will be just as much about him as Fields. Does he have a good plan for the quarterbacks and can he finally make this offense presentable after years of disappointment? He better hope so. Otherwise, the organization may be forced to find somebody who can succeed where he’d failed.