Up until the end of last season, Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio kept his focus on the entire defense. He left coaching of specific positions to his assistants. This year the Bears decided to make some changes. A big one was letting outside linebacker coach Clint Hurtt walk in free agency and announcing Fangio himself would take over developing that position. It seem his focus narrowed even further than that. The personal one-on-one coaching of Leonard Floyd.
This might seem like a bit of micromanaging from the veteran coach. At the same time, it’s a job he knows well. Coaching linebackers was the first assistant job Fangio had in the NFL. He was very good at it. The New Orleans Saints sent four different linebackers to the Pro Bowl during his time there. He’s had similar success almost everywhere else he’s been. He knows what he is doing.
Besides, he has added incentive to do it.
The coaching of Leonard Floyd begins and ends with technique
Floyd told a rather scary story at minicamp practices. Apparently it took him two months to recover from the second of two concussions he suffered during the 2016 season. Both of them a result of poor tackling technique. He led with his head both times, slamming into teammate Akiem Hicks trying to make a tackle.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
This was a shame not just for his health but also because Floyd was playing so well. He had 6.5 sacks in a five-game span before the head injuries struck. Fangio isn’t dumb. He knows the key to success for the Bears defense in 2017 is having Floyd on the field. To do that the young linebacker must learn proper technique to avoid such dangers. So the 58-year old coach took personal command of his offseason development.
To avoid concussions, Leonard Floyd working with #Bears DC Vic Fangio on "putting our hands and hat in the right places" on sled machine.
— Zach Zaidman (@ZachZaidman) June 14, 2017
Muscle and speed gains
Floyd himself also believes he’ll be aided by his better understanding of NFL schemes and speed. He’s not thinking as much as he was last season. He’s reacting more, and that should help him avoid unnecessary collisions. On top of that, he confirmed the many reports from a few weeks ago that he’s heavier this year. Adam Jahns of Chicago Sun-Times elaborated.
“Floyd declared himself in better shape — “It’s like night and day,” he said — than he was this time last year, when he was feeling his way through his first pro minicamp after being selected No. 9 overall.
Listed at 240 pounds, Floyd said he probably weighs a little under 247.
“I just wanted to be as heavy as I could get as a person,” he said, “to just eat my three meals a day, eat my snacks in between, and whatever I weigh, I weigh.”
For comparison, Von Miller entered the league at around 240-245 lbs as well. He had 11.5 sacks as a rookie. The next year he’d bulked up to around 250 and posted 18.5 his second year. Floyd insists the muscle gain is noticeable on the field. He feels faster than he’s ever been. The only reason he isn’t consistently beating tackles in practice is his own fundamental mistakes. Things that Fangio plans to have ironed out by opening day.
