Hey, I don’t comment on the Bears’ boards often. You guys do a good job of speaking for yourselves. But this one was just remarkable. It’s a masterful confluence of optimism and pessimism in a couple of highly entertaining paragraphs.
I can't agree with this enough. It sucks to strip the cupboard bare, but you have to do it. HOWEVER, we need a new GM. Jettisoning everyone to let Pace have another go? Get rid of everyone, take the painful year, accumulate draft picks, and then you can miss on a pick or two when you have multiple high shots to take. I'm in the build the line first camp, but damn it, we also need to be drafting QBs. Someone posted on Reddit the Packers have drafted the same number of QBs since 2008 (or something like that). The difference is they had a HOF QB and STILL picked QBs because you need to take swings. Hell jiggadhu back on CBS I remember being super high on Brian Brohm, who the Packers picked up and he promptly shit the bed, they got rid of him. You beat the crapshoot by taking swings. We said this at the time, but Pace went *ALL IN* on Trubs, not just with the trade up, but then the following year to trade away 1sts to get Mack! You pushed your chips into the middle of the table and your pocket 10s got busted. The house shouldn't come around and give you another stack of chips to try again. But I'll be goddamned if that's not exactly what the Bears will do. Every fucking time. I didn't even watch the game, still haven't. And I thought to myself, why am I even this pissed off, given that I knew full well what would happen? And it occurred to me, it's the Packers. I hate the fucking Packers. It's not even a rivalry anymore when they kick your ass year in and year out without fucking fail. And we lose the close games, but we also get fucking blown out too like this. Completely embarrassed on national TV again, and again, and again. Fuck we were going to the playoffs and they were going home, and they were going home when Sexy Rexy "Madbomber" Grossman put up the historic 0.0 QB Rating. The last time we blew out the Packers was 12/23/2007, Favre's last game against us, and then we had one year to enjoy that before Rodgers shows up and BLOWS US OUT OF THE WATER. We have never blown out the Packers while Rodgers was there, EVEN WHEN HE WASN'T EVEN ON THE FIELD. If this still were a rivalry, they fucking take it seriously. I heard they went for it on 4th down late in the game and the announcers laughed when they converted? Rodgers played the entire game despite kicking our ass? You can say classless / running up the score, but if the shoe were on the other foot I'd want the Bears to show no mercy too. And because my dumb ass has stuck to this fandom after being born into it, I will be just as pissed off when the Packers inevitably give Jordan Love a win in his NFL debut in week 17 (the under center podcast pointed that out, and damned if they won't be right). I'm honestly probably out for the year. I can't take this shit anymore.
This, this right here is why I will keep checking the boards through the rest of this season, brilliant. I get that Nagy can't be completely honest to reporters and such about what the problems are, no coach can be. But I am now 100% convinced he doesn't even know what's wrong and what to do to fix it. I read the Bears have something like 7+ years in a row of losing coming out of the bye week? A rested team with extra time to game plan has consistently shit the bed post bye. 2018 was a year that exposed lots of problems but the needle was maybe pointed up. Then coming off the wildcard loss, Nagy loses his shit over a missed FG and focuses wholly on that rather than ALL OF THE OTHER PROBLEMS this team had. We were a kicker away from beating the Eagles. We were a LOT MORE fucking pieces away from making the Super Bowl, much less winning it. I'm going to sit down and digest the shit show later today probably, but people are saying that the D straight up quit? At that point Nagy's not even the "players coach" anymore. I sincerely hope he doesn't pull out a plum win against the Jags and maybe the Lions and the McCaskey's try to sell us him for another fucking year. I will lose my mind. I didn't think of it until Hoge and Jahns pointed it out, but the Texans have a "motivated" Watson who feels, probably very rightly, the Bears slighted him. That should be interesting to watch. I'm half tempted with the next guy to skip the "might" and put in suck from the jump. Because you and I both full well fucking know Sweaty Teddy and old Georgie Boy are going to pick them, maybe they'll bring in more consultants. The sad fact of the matter is, it starts at the top.
What if I told you guys at the start of the season by week 12 your kicker will kick more consecutive field goals (15) than total points your offense will put up in the 3rd quarter (10) and 50% more at that. I agree it's time to clean house and blow up this team, but for the love of tacos can we keep Sandtoes?
I don't think Pace is as safe as some of you guys do. Not to be the intentional contrarian, best leave that to rob--but I think there's direct historical prescident from the bears on my arguements' side. I also think we all forget Pace's contract is done after next season. Nagy has 2 years left. Jerry Angelo kept Dick Jauron for a lame-duck/pointless year. Emery kept Lovie for one too. Its happened to tons of coaches around the NFL when you follow the money. The cons are piling up with Pace. He's swung and missed with multiple quarterbacks. From Glennon to Mitch to Foles. He has a shit cap situation, limited draft capital because his trade ups haven't worked. What has worked? Allen Robinson and Darnell Mooney. It's the move a team following the money in a pandemic year with uncertainty for next besides a lowered salary cap would make. You don't have to pay 2 coaches. You also aren't going to be a top job available among many--Detroit, Atlanta, Jax, NYJ, Houston, maybe LAC, maybe Denver. NYJ and Houston will be because Trevor Lawrence and DeShaun Watson. FYI--I am NOT advocating Nagy be here next year. Then again, who knows. This team goes stupid when they go 'out of the box' or they can just keep losing giving the Bears no choice but to can them all. So its really easy to rag on sweaty teddy. Truly, it is. But he's not the guy executing. He's not the guy trading up, forfeiting future draft capital only to see the trade up backfire. He approves a lot of money moving to players/coaches--so he and George aren't cheap. Intelligence is another can of worms. I don't care if he's president at this point, so long as he/George a guy who won't put the cart before the horse this time. The talking heads all keep saying "hire football guys." Haven't they done that? Jerry Angelo didn't get the job walking in off the street. Nor Emery. Nor Pace. Find a guy who instead of drafting the top QB of a draft with a lame-duck coach making the kid learn 2 playbooks in 2 years, you fortify tackle positions before pairing the new QB with the new HC in 2022? Don't makeshift the OL, because that's what JA and Pace did. Pace fared better because he found Daniels and Whitehair whereas JA found Carimi--who couldn't pass block until he left and another team taught him how, and if I recall--Chris Williams was a walking injury before he got drafted. Hoping a guy like Alejandro Villanueva can be what John Tait was almost 2 decades ago entering his mid-30s at left tackle for bigger $ isn't cutting it. Signing Bobby Massie and paying an at-best average guy double-digit money didn't cut it; and if you go to CCS--they all want more of the same. Get the sexy QB and maybe the OL will figure it out if you give it a 2nd round pick or two because Daniels/Whitehair could be found in the 2nd round--so a stud LT can too! Spoiler: You don't find great talent at LT in the 2nd round. Or 3rd. Or in FA. Because Ronnie Stanley, David Bakhtiari, Garrett Bolles, and Taylor Decker were supposed to be FA this spring. They're all now highly paid. There's a reason for that. Your best chance is to find it in the 1st round. Have a competent scouting dept that can vet out the Chris Williams' and Gabe Carimis to find the Brandon Albert or Duane Brown. Just find a guy. Find 2/a RT while you're at it. Change the mindset to win the trenches, and worry about the sexy weapons later. Because we have that now--and as great as Miller, Mooney, Arob, and Monty look when they make good plays (which isn't often)--the bears OL is getting pushed into the backfield often (when they aren't letting defenders go right by). Besides Kyle Long, Olin Kreutz and Roberto Garza--I can't recall OL (especially OT) who you see downfield mauling LBs/DBs because he's at that level or pancaking a DL. Now all of ^ may not work--but I know again focusing on D via draft/trade while half-assing the offense doesn't.
I think Pace was safe...recent developments with this team probably changes that. I think it's probably likely now that, you're right, and they dump Pace and leave Nagy's future in the hands of whoever they hire.
I can almost live with Nagy as a lame duck next year so long as a new GM is in place. Next year we will suck either way. We are in cap hell, will either have a veteran journeyman QB (most likely Foles due to his deal) or a rookie who will suck badly behind a crap o-line. Defense will be worse due to age and cuts. Probably doomed to 6-10 or worse, which will give the new GM the perfect excuse to fire Nagy after 3 straight years of missing the playoffs and crap offense.
I can't. Aside from the offensive line abortion, he had some pieces for this offense to succeed, but how and when he used those pieces leads you to another question why? I'm so done with that visor wearing cueball, and his "Be You" bullshit and the Club Dub mentality. When the defensive trash talk becomes more offensive than his Andy Reid Playbook you better burn that motherfucker and launch the other.
Its certainly not ideal. He wont have a good staff, gotta think Chuckles Pagano will polish up the old resume and not be here (which isn't a bad thing but think Paul Pasqualone in 2014 being what you're essentially getting). Maybe you keep Lazor because I don't exactly foresee teams lining up because they have to have him, unless we're talking Division 2 NCAA bottom feeders. And again, good coaches are going to steer clear whether he stays or goes because if the Bears offered you a job with Nagy or the team picking the assumed-next big #1 draft pick at QB or the chance to coach DeShaun Watson, where are you going to coach? Even if Nagy is fired, best case scenario you're probably getting the 3rd best coach. Also have to think the personalities/guys who have quit like Ejax and Fuller would be gone. Fuller I believe they can get a really good package including a 1st rounder in return. It creates a hole but you free up a lot of money and make up some of the draft capital Pace is too often charitable with. Ejax yeah, you're probably selling low on/may not be able to because he gets a big chunk of change from his new deal next year. Now in 2022? Say you suck and go 6-10 next year when the official house cleaning happens, but the run game looks promising or a young tackle (or two) makes you think you have a foundation now its time to pair a QB of the future with. That's when the bears will be a good job to have.
I can't agree more on building the line and almost all of your post, but I do disagree on Teddy. He's the guy who *hired* the long string of losers. This last round he and George admitted they don't know what they're doing and brought in Accorsi to consult and.....they still hired a loser. And the Bears, in all their Bearsness, will double down on that failure and give him another year. THAT is why we can pillory George and Teddy. Because they are the ones fucking up the decision, on who gets to make the decisions. Pace swung big, which is admirable, but then he whiffed massively and suddenly we find ourselves with a roster that has cap problems, is overly one sided to the defense, etc. I'd be all about a "Director of Football Operations" who presides over the football side and leave Teddy to do the money, as so many talking heads have suggested. I guess it's the best we can hope for while the McCaskeys still own the team. I mean, how can we not look at two other venerable Chicago sports franchises and not see the similarities? Blackhawks and Cubs both had ownership changes which straight up changed the culture. I don't doubt George loves the team. I also don't buy they are cheap. But I completely buy they don't know what they're doing. Suppose for a minute they don't fire Pace or Nagy. What would be the path to success in 2021? The only things I see are another wasted, mediocre, middle of the road season. With Pace then gone with possibly Nagy and at THAT point we can start rebuilding? I would love to have some hope for 2022, but I would much rather, at the least, seeing the new GM make the picks this year to start building his future, even with the lame duck Nagy. What I think we'll get, is Pace whiffing on some more early round Offensive talent and being in an even shittier position for 2022.
Most of you have probably already read this but in case you didn't, here is Bearswire on Nagy calling out the defence after Sunday's game. Defence and offence. Why is Matt Nagy calling out the Bears defense for one poor performance? Alyssa Barbieri follow December 1, 2020 7:45 am When Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy met with the media one day after his team’s embarrassing 41-25 loss to the Green Bay Packers, he was visibly frustrated. As was every Bears fan that watched that debacle on Sunday Night Football. And there’s plenty of reasons for Nagy to be frustrated. The entire team performed poorly, from the abysmal offense to the usually-dominant defense. But on Monday afternoon, Nagy made the mistake of taking a swing at his top defense for one poor performance, while his offense continues to be an absolute embarrassment. The defense definitely deserves a bulk of the criticism for giving up 41 points, their most since Dec. 2016, and looking like they’d given up, especially at the end of the third quarter. But Nagy’s anger was directed to the wrong unit. “That’s not who we are as a defense,” Nagy told reporters Monday. “That can’t happen. And our defensive guys know that. You have to be able to shut them down and not allow 16 first downs in 36 plays, 5 of 6 on third downs and three touchdown drives. “They need to understand where we’re coming from with that and how we feed off of them as a defense. They’ve done a hell of a job all year long, but yesterday was not where we need to be.” Of all the possibly bad things to happen against the Packers, the Bears defense coming out with that performance was among the most surprising. This was a Chicago defense that has been top-notch all season and hadn’t given up 30 points all season. Then again, this isn’t a performance that’s likely to be repeated. This defense has been among the best all season. Which can’t be said about Chicago’s offense, which has been one of, if not the worst in the NFL. But when you start calling out the one unit that’s carried your team to its five wins, that’s when you’re asking for trouble. “See, here’s what you’ve got to understand: These guys know how much I have their backs as players,” Nagy said. “This is not news to them. They know how they played. They get it. “This isn’t a blame game… But what I’m saying is that our defense understands and they know how significant and important they are to this team.” While Nagy might think he’s rallying his team, it certainly sounds like he’s placing the blame on his defense when they’ve been the ones that have carried him through his three seasons as head coach.
