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Former Chicago Bears Great Offers His Solution to Coaching Problem

By
Erik Lambert
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chicago bears

Chicago Bears head coach John Fox is four games away from getting fired. Unless by some miracle he’s able to win all four, signs point to him being fired by early January. At that point the question will shift and split in two. Part one will be whether GM Ryan Pace follows him. Part two is, if not, who will Pace’s next head coaching hire be?

All we know for sure at this point is there is likely a list in play. One with a considerable number of names already on it. Before long more will be added. Pace being a man known for his methodical and detailed approach, the odds are he will spend the next month narrowing that list down to a short set of names he’ll want to pursue.

Who will that? There are plenty of intriguing candidates from Josh McDaniels in New England, Frank Reich in Philadelphia, Pat Shurmur in Minnesota, and of course Jim Harbaugh lurking up there at Michigan. However, one former Bears star thinks there’s another name they must consider.

Olin Kreutz urges Bears to go after David Shaw

It’s not a surprise that Kreutz, a six-time Pro Bowl center for the Bears, would have interest in this coaching search. The fact he likes Shaw? Also not a surprise. If one were to see how the Stanford head coach operates, there would be instant visions of Lovie Smith among Bears fans. The only major difference is Shaw’s expertise comes on the offensive side.

There is plenty to like about him. Shaw is 45-years old but been a head coach since 2011. In that time Stanford has compiled a respectable 73-20 record including three Pac-12 championships and two Rose Bowl appearances and one victory. What makes this so impressive is the handicap he’s constantly working with.

Stanford is notorious for being one of the most academically rigorous schools in the country. This limits the pool of talent that Shaw is able to work with from year to year. Yet he continues to win football games. That is the mark of a quality coach if ever there was one. The question isn’t whether he’s qualified. It’s if he has interest in the NFL at all.

Word persists that his wife and family are happy in California. He has a good job as is. So it would be a challenge to pry him away.

New Stat Reveals Just How Little Help Mitch Trubisky Is Getting

By
Erik Lambert
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mitch trubisky

Mitch Trubisky is catching some flak for his play of late. The Chicago Bears rookie certainly isn’t having a year similar to what Dak Prescott had last season. Then again Prescott isn’t having a year he had last season, but moving on. Truth be told Trubisky has been average. Not terrible. Not good. Just average. His completion percentage is barely above 54% and he’s thrown for over 200 yards in just one of his eights starts this year.

Some people have already begun to presume he’s a bust. A normal reaction for modern NFL fans when a team isn’t winning. The fact is Trubisky has learning still to do but not nearly all of his problems on the stat sheet are on him. Recently Pro Football Focus broke out an interesting stat. It centers around passes thrown by quarterbacks that were deemed “catchable.”

It was then broken down even further to passes thrown for a clean pocket and then seeing how accurate certain quarterback are in those situations. Bears fans might be surprised by the result.

Mitch Trubisky always puts it close enough when he has time

Only Trubisky and Vikings QB Case Keenum have a perfect accuracy rate when they’re able to throw from clean pockets. So why is Keenum having a career year (2,703 yards, 16 TDs, 4 INTs) while Trubisky is struggling so much. There are certain variables in play but in the end it comes down to the supporting casts.

Keenum has been sacked a total of nine times in 10 starts this season. Trubisky has been sacked 21 times in eight starts. Keenum enjoys the luxury of throwing to receivers like Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, both of whom seem destined for the Pro Bowl. Trubisky is trying to make it work with castoffs like Kendall Wright and Dontrelle Inman. That’s asking too much.

Yet the proof is there. Whenever Trubisky has gotten the pocket and his receivers actually get open, he makes the throw.

This reinforces the running theme since he became starter. The Bears badly need to upgrade their offensive roster in 2018. It starts with the receiving corps and the offensive line will likely need some attention too. Especially given the injury situation for Kyle Long and iffy effectiveness of their offensive tackles.

There’s also the pesky situation regarding head coach John Fox and his painfully inadequate staff. They too need replacing. Suffice to say GM Ryan Pace has lots of work to do before he can show the football world he was right about Trubisky.

The One Chicago Bears 2018 What-If Nobody Wants to Hear

By
Erik Lambert
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john fox

At this point everybody is assuming John Fox is gone by January 2nd next year when the CHicago Bears 2018 off-season will begin. There are plenty of reasons to think so. Fox currently holds the worst winning percentage in franchise history. Some of his personnel decisions over the past month have called into question his grasp of reality. Worst of all his players continue to play without discipline or identity.

At the same time, the situation remains unchanged. Fox is still employed. GM Ryan Pace has not appeared to pronounce there’s any problem whatsoever with the head coach. Thus all people can rely on are rumors and common sense. Problem is common sense doesn’t always apply to this organization.

So it’s time to ask perhaps the most dreadful question of all. What if Fox finds a way to convince Pace and George McCaskey to stay?

John Fox only hope is to sell a solution to the Mitch Trubisky problem

Weird as it sounds, the big thing that is crushing Fox’s hope to survive isn’t the losing. Of course that’s a big part of it but the bigger issue is the lack of quality progress seen with rookie quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Some of this isn’t Fox’s fault, namely the trash situation at wide receiver. At the same time the play calling and preparation on offense has been dreadful for almost the entire stretch since the rookie stepped in.

Trubisky is barely completing 54% of his passes and has thrown for over 200 yards in just one game this season. Part of the problem is a lack of creativity by Dowell Loggains to get him some easy completions. So what if Fox sold it that he could find an upgrade at offensive coordinator. Somebody with far more credibility.

Here’s just one example.

Turner recently stepped away as offensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings due to philosophical differences with head coach Mike Zimmer. Over a career spanning 26 years as an offensive coordinator and head coach, Turner has produced a top 10 offense eight times and a top 10 passing offense 11 times. Some quarterbacks he’s had a hand in developing?

  • Troy Aikman
  • Trent Green
  • Drew Brees
  • Philip Rivers
  • Teddy Bridgewater

Imagine being McCaskey and hearing a proposal like that. Even with the losing it would be hard not to feel at least a little bit intrigued by the idea. It wouldn’t have to be just Turner either. Mike McCoy, another reputable offensive mind and former Fox disciple also recently became available. This is definitely ammunition Fox could use in one last roll of the dice to rescue his job.

So in case you members of the #FireFox movement weren’t afraid before, there’s that to think about too.

The Cubs Have Signed RHP Tyler Chatwood To A Three-Year-Deal

By
Sean Sears
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Chicago Cubs, Free Agent, Colorado Rockies, Starting Pitching, Chicago Cubs

The Cubs make a sneaky move today, siging RHP Tyler Chatwood to a three year deal worth $38 million. The 27-year-old had been identified as a target earlier this offseason, but I don’t think many expected the Cubs to make like this prior to Shohei Ohtani making a decision.

The right-handers ERA last year is slightly inflated, after having to pitch half his games in the thin Denver air of Coors Field, but his splits tell another story. His 4.69 ERA in 2017 looks bad on the surface, but looking at his home/away splits you see his 3.49 road ERA tells you another story.

He throws five different pitches and his fastball has gotten faster as he’s progressed through his career. But what likely drew him to the Cubs was his 58.1% ground ball rate, his ability to induce soft contact follows suit with the rest of the Cubs staff.

Chatwood likely slides right into the 4th position of the Cubs rotation, behind Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, and Jose Quintana. And while the Cubs signing Chatwood could be sign they are out on Alex Cobb or even Shohei Ohtani, the team needed at least two-three more arms.

Don’t expect the Cubs to be waving the white flag on Ohtani quite yet, but adding Chatwood to the back end of this rotation over the next three years gives the Cubs the depth they have been searching for.

New Information On Possible Abreu Trade

By
Matt Enuco
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I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of being right. Although, I could be wrong just as quickly as I’m right, but it’s more fun to stick with the “I told you so” narrative. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal agrees with my suspicions that Jose Abreu will remain in a White Sox uniform for the foreseeable future.

Back on Nov. 13, I wrote:

“Abreu…is the nucleus of a withering roster. He was the centerpiece of a presentation to land heralded Cuban-prospect Luis Robert and serves as a mentor for a blooming Yoan Moncada. It would be silly to ignore an enormous offer for the slugger, the charge to snuff out intangible factors like leadership skills and clubhouse chemistry led by SABR gurus wielding excel sheets and algorithms should be dispensed with in discussing Abreu’s value. Abreu is much more than a thumping first baseman and he means more to White Sox fans than can be tabulated on a balance sheet.”

On Thursday, Rosenthal struck a tone very similar to mine, writing:

“Barring an unexpected turn, the Chicago White Sox are unlikely to trade first baseman Jose Abreu to the Boston Red Sox or any other club. The White Sox, knowing Abreu’s importance in the clubhouse as an example for their young players, figure to value hi more than prospective suitors who see only his on-field performance.”

While I admit my statement offers a caveat in acknowledging an over-the-moon offer, Rosenthal and I agree that Abreu provides more than just offensive production. His clubhouse leadership is difficult to ignore despite the growing chorus of pundits who dismiss clubhouse chemistry and intangible value – probably because they can’t measure either.

Still, don’t take Rosenthal’s stance as gospel. He does not cite any sources; simply calls on years of experience and understanding how trade markets work. Rosenthal also points out that Abreu was statistically (fWAR) even with Eric Hosmer while eclipsing elite competition including Anthony Rizzo, Cody Bellinger, Ryan Zimmerman and Carlos Santana.

Both Rosenthal and I agree one more thing: The White Sox are interested in younger talent, not Jackie Bradley Jr.

Here is what I wrote on Nov. 27:

“Let’s put a bow on this rumor right now; Jackie Bradley Junior won’t be traded to the White Sox this offseason. Not because the Red Sox don’t have interest in Jose Abreu or the White Sox have shown interest in the all-star centerfielder before, but rather Bradley Jr. doesn’t fit the South Siders timeline and needs.”

And Rosenthal writes:

“A Red Sox package headed by center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. would not make sense for the rebuilding White Sox, not when Bradley is under control for only three more seasons. The White Sox want younger players, and the Red Sox might not be a match in that regard…”

Later in my article, I point out similar feelings on why the Red Sox and White Sox don’t match up in a trade, but I also believe the Red Sox might bet the farm for Abreu if they can’t snatch Giancarlo Stanton or another power-bat.

Don’t burn your Abreu jerseys yet. He is adored on the south side of Chicago and many would love to see him retire in a White Sox uniform with gleaming world-series rings lining his hands

Jimmy Butler Yelling “WTF Was That” At Taj Gibson’s Sad Full Court Heave Makes My Heart Happy

By
Matthew Milakovich
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Now that the Chicago Bulls are officially the NBA’s newest “process,” sometimes it makes me happy to just sit back and watch our former favorites flourish on their new teams. Even Jimmy Butler yelling WTF makes me happy.

Fire, I miss fire.

I don’t care what anyone says, I really like this new look Minnesota team with Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson, good ‘ol Coach Thibs, and even Jamal Crawford– who used to be a Bull what seems like 142 years ago.

Ohhhh, the good ‘ol days… Jimmy Butler yelling WTF

It makes my heart smile when I see they still have the same chemistry they did here in Chicago. It makes me happy knowing they’re happy, because, what else do we really have? Now, it REALLY made me happy to see Jimmy yelling WTF with that smug grin on his face, as he watched Taj Gibson’s half ass attempt at a full court heave fall about 13 miles short of the rim last night.

Did that not make you smile? Because if it didn’t, and this is just a wild guess, you may be dead inside. Honestly I’m glad to see our boys having fun somewhere else. Because for as much joy as they gave us watching them for so many years, they sure as hell enjoy it.

This Might Be the Most Irrational Fear of a Chicago Bears Coaching Change

By
Erik Lambert
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vic fangio

Everybody agrees at this point that the Chicago Bears coaching situation is going to change on January 2nd, 2018. This isn’t really up for debate anymore. John Fox has endured his third-straight losing season and is very much in danger of claiming the worst winning percentage in Bears history. Not even somebody with his once glowing reputation survives that.

Yet even amidst this carnage, there is an underlying fear among fans. Or maybe a better word is “concern.” If there is one coach they aren’t keen on losing to the coming purge, it’s defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. Despite ongoing injury problems his unit has performed ably. Far better than the other two phases during the course of this season.

Unfortunately word persists that he and the rest of the staff are out in 2018. Not just because of the losing, but in Fangio’s case because he wants out. This will leave the Bears in a difficult situation to replace him. Good coordinators are always hard to find. For fans there is a deeper issue though.

Chicago Bears coaching shift may narrow pool because of 3-4 scheme

Back in 2015 for the first time the Bears changed to a 3-4 scheme in the NFL. That was going to require specific types of players in order to execute. Now the fear is the team may not be able to find a coordinator comparable to Fangio who can run their current system. Worse there’s another anxiety. Would they consider going back to a 4-3?

That would be another shift in personnel and more years of waiting for fruits to appear. Except no. It doesn’t have to be that way. If the Bears are able to find a good coach, such an issue can be worked around in fairly short order. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune had a good explanation for why.

“You need to pay close attention to what the defense is doing each Sunday. The Bears — and every other 3-4 defense — are in the sub package so frequently that the number of times they’re in a true 3-4 front is really limited. Floyd has the ability to flourish in a 4-3 scheme, and the Giants likely would have drafted him to play in their 4-3 defense had the Bears not selected him. I’ll stick with what I said last week: The Bears’ focus should be on the best coach, period. Scheme preferences are a secondary consideration.”

Here’s a perfect example. In 2015 the Eagles were a 3-4 defensive team under Chip Kelly and finished the year 30th in the league. The next season they sought out Jim Schwartz as their next defensive coordinator. The problem? He was a classic 4-3 guy. People had the same misgivings in Philadelphia. By the end of the season the Eagles had jumped to 13th in the league.

If you get a good coordinator, he will find a way to apply the best talents of the personnel he has available. That should be the goal for the Bears come this January.

White Sox Are Tracking Rebounding Reliever

By
Matt Enuco
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The White Sox are tracking a rebounding reliever that could pay dividends.
Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images North America via Zimbio

The latest rumor involving the White Sox includes a name I identified in an article on Nov. 3. According to Jesse Sanchez, the South Siders have already begun courting the reliever.

Romo fits the profile of a venerated veteran coming off a tough season with a cheap price tag that the White Sox have made a habit of targeting as they continue rebuilding the franchise. Romo was one of the best closers in Major League Baseball for a stretch that included three World Series championships with the San Francisco Giants. The reliever was a featured member of a stellar pitching staff in San Francisco and closed 38 games for the Giants in 2013, his lone all-star season.

Despite being honored with only one all-star season Romo’s value was incalculable for the Giants from 2010 to 2016. He served as the Swiss army knife of the pitching staff and seemed to happily flummox batters in every capacity. And 2017 was supposed to be his grand homecoming when he signed a sizable one-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Romo’s season went south quickly and he was designated for assignment in July, but he found new life on the left, right coast. Tampa Bay scooped up the veteran and after posting a 6.12 earned run average in his first 30 games with the Dodgers, Romo rebounded with the Rays logging a 1.47 ERA in 25 appearances.

Sometimes this happens to players. A new city occasionally wreaks havoc on their stat-line for inexplicable reasons, but Romo appears to be back on track. His K-rate slumped last season (26.3 percent) while his walks swelled to a career-high and every other measurable metric went haywire for the veteran. But the recovery he mounted in Tampa Bay speaks volumes about his value.

I could toss out all the other sabermetric jargon to beat a dead horse and say that Romo had a down year and that he will be a bargain this offseason, but the numbers are easy enough to decipher. His FIP landed on a career-high 4.22, K-BB rate sunk to a career low (17.9 percent) and up hard contact at a rate not seen since his rookie season. All this amounts to the perfect recipe for the White Sox to reestablish value.

Romo’s bread and butter had always been his wipeout slider. His fastball was never an out pitch and rarely reached 90 miles per hour, but his heater lost even more velocity in 2017 and he had to rely on the slider 58 percent of the time. Romo has gone to the slider more in past seasons but it seems that is a saturation point.

Given Romo signed a $3 million deal with the Dodgers as one of the heralded free-agent relievers last offseason it stands to reason that the White Sox could snag the right-hander for less than that on a year deal with a strong likelihood to flip him at the trade deadline. White Sox brass won’t overpay for Romo but expect them to be competitive given their shrinking payroll and proximity to competing. Rick Hahn landed catcher Welington Castillo on a two-year deal recently and that indicates that Hahn is willing to start thinking about the 2019 and 2020 seasons where the South Siders will start contending for postseason bids.

Romo is 34 years old and relievers are candidates for short-term deals given their value around the league, so it makes sense to offer Romo a one-year deal with a $2.5 million cap. He won’t command the type of salary he earned from the Dodgers but he finished so strong in 2017 and has a lengthy resume that the league won’t ignore. In his tweet, Sanchez points out the Rays, Blue Jays and Nationals as teams already courting Romo.

With Winter Meetings kicking off on Dec. 10 the White Sox might make signing Romo a priority. Hahn has already explained that this offseason will be a little less hectic than last season but there are still decisions to be made.

Want Chicago Bears To Take Big Swing on Next Coach? Here’s the Guy

By
Erik Lambert
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chicago bears

The NFL is like any other business. In order to have success, a company has to be willing to take a risk. Sometimes it will blow up in their face, but sometimes it will open the doors to endless possibilities. This is the case for the Chicago Bears as they look towards 2018. John Fox was anything but a risk when they hired him three years ago. He was experienced, proven and looked like a sure thing. Problem is all commodities have an expiration date.

It seems the Bears got the spoiled version of Fox. Now their search for a replacement is set to begin. The problem is the pressure is enormous. This is not a hire they can afford to get wrong. In such situations it can lead a GM to go the route of the familiar, leaning towards somebody he knows well. In the case of Ryan Pace that means either Pete Carmichael or Dennis Allen. Neither of which can be considered favorable candidates.

At the same time there are certain men who know this is their last shot, so why not take a gamble and go for it all? Make an inspired pick that is high risk but even higher reward. If this is the way the Bears might be thinking come January, then there is definitely one coach who fits that profile.

Lane Kiffin is the outlaw of football coaches and may free the Chicago Bears

Mention the name Lane Kiffin to a common football fan and the odds are you’ll get a mixed reaction. There are plenty of people who really despise the man. He has a reputation for being quite antagonistic. He accused fellow coach Urban Meyer of recruit tampering while he was at Tennessee. Before that he was fired after just over a season as Oakland Raiders head coach by late owner Al Davis, who called him a “flat-out liar.”

He reportedly warned Alshon Jeffery he’d be pumping gas the rest of his life if he went to South Carolina rather than Tennessee. Then he dumped Tennessee after just one season to take the job at USC. So all in all he’s not the most beloved person around the football landscape. In fact some people, including other coaches have threatened to fight him. So why then would the Bears want to go anywhere near this guy?

The answer is simple. He’s a master when it comes to quarterbacks.

Kiffin has a long reputation of making something out of nothing

Anybody can have success as a coach when a Tom Brady, or Aaron Rodgers or Peyton Manning is inherited. Often the best way to tell the difference between good and bad coaches is how they do with average quarterbacks. Kiffin has become a savant at this enterprise. It started from the first time he became offensive coordinator at USC back in 2005.

That year he got the highest completion percentage and most yards Matt Leinart would have in his Hall of Fame college career. The next season he got 29 touchdowns and just nine interceptions from John David Booty. After his tumultuous lone season in Oakland, Kiffin spent a year as head coach in Tennessee where Jonathan Crompton, who had six TD passes total his previous three seasons, threw 27 with Kiffin in charge.

That was when he headed back to USC where he became head coach. Under his guidance quarterback Matt Barkley would set school records with 12,327 passing yards and 116 touchdowns.

Kiffin has also learned under some outstanding coaches

Part of becoming a good head coach is learning from those who already are. Kiffin got his first big lessons from Pete Carroll as an assistant at USC. Years later after he left Southern California, he was made offensive coordinator at Alabama, getting a chance to learn under Nick Saban. During that time Kiffin really began to showcase his prowess as a play caller. He was so good at times that he actually predicted touchdowns before certain calls even developed on the field.

With his help the Crimson Tide won the national championship in 2015, mostly thanks to his offense which put up 45 points on Clemson that day. A year later after another successful season, Kiffin left right before another national title game to become head coach at Florida Atlantic University.

It became clear right away the man had used his lessons wisely. FAU went from 3-9 the year prior to 10-3 this year under him. It’s the first winning record the Owls have had in 10 years and the best record they’ve ever had since moving to Division-I A in 2004. Amazingly it wasn’t the quarterback play that led the way. It was the running game as they piled up over 3,700 yards on the ground in 13 games. So he’s certainly not a one-trick pony.

Kiffin is a gamble but could also be the answer for Trubisky

There are so many ways hiring Lane Kiffin could go wrong for the Bears. He has a reputation for being brash and a little off-putting. He also hasn’t held down a job for longer than four years in over a decade. At the same time there is so much that could go right with it. Kiffin is only 41-years old. He’s an offensive wizard who specializes in quarterbacks. He’s also been mentored by two of the best coaches since the dawn of the new millennium.

Imagine what he might be able to accomplish with Mitch Trubisky as his quarterback. He’d easily be the most talented player at the position Kiffin has had the chance to coach. It could be a match made in football heaven. The question is would Pace be willing to bet his job on it?

Is Ric Flair Attending The Bulls Game In Indianapolis Tonight?

By
Matthew Milakovich
-

Okay, either the Nature Boy Ric Flair is attending the Bulls game in Indianapolis tonight or someone in Indiana REALLY loves Lauri Markannen.

This tweet got thrown into one of our Facebook writer’s chats a few minutes ago, and when I saw that it said “Rick Flair in attendance” I got really stoked.

(By the way, Marcus, you spelled our princes name wrong)

MAN! Who doesn’t love a good WOOOOOOOOO! Possibly even a jet flyin, limousine ridin’, yada yada, and I’m having a hard time holdin’ these alligators down? I recite it every morning before I get on the EL simply for morale!

I mean hey, sometimes it works for these guys…

The Bulls are currently leading 96-94 with a minute left in the fourth quarter.

Now lemme get two claps and a Ric Flair! WOOOOOOO!

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