Nagy's the Probllem

 

September 27, 2021

The Cleveland Browns are one of the better teams in the NFL. They have a very potent offense and pretty good defense. Then again, every defense looks good facing the Bears. I was excited to see rookie Justin Fields make his first start at quarterback. However, thanks to his coach, the offense showed no life. The Bears defense kept them in the game trailing only 10-3 at halftime.  Ultimately, the Browns got their act together outscoring the Bears 16-3 cruising to an easy 26-6 victory.

The Bears have reached a historic all-time low. While Nagy’s offense rarely scores twenty points, yesterday they managed only two measly field goals. After the game Nagy said he will watch the tape and see what went wrong and why. Echoing the sentiments of Dave Kaplan and crew on the post-game show, if you want to know why things went bad, look in the mirror. The Browns turned the ball over on downs when Browns QB Baker Mayfield was sacked. On the Bears first play David Montgomery ran for 16 yards, setting up a Bear field goal. The Bears would run 43 more plays for a total of 31 yards.

Nagy’s play calling didn’t give Fields a chance to succeed. There were no roll-outs, bootlegs or play action. He never called a screen pass, which if executed properly may have slowed the Browns pass rush. Instead he tried to make Fields execute his offense which hasn’t worked since he got here. It pisses me off that the Bears brought him back after two eight win seasons.

With Fields in the pocket, the Browns had nine sacks. Thirty-nine year old Jason Peters looked like an old man. He was being beaten at the line of scrimmage, allowing Miles Garrett to set a Browns record with 4 ½ sacks. Germain Ifedi was just as bad. Nagy did not make any adjustments. It’s imperative you protect your franchise QB. God forbid Nagy would change his offense to provide Fields some protection. Fields was getting creamed and Nagy did nothing about it.

Even though they might be the worst tackling team, I am going to cut the defense some slack. They played a very good first half. They stopped a very good team from running the ball. They also pressured Mayfield.  Robert Quinn, who is having a bounce back season had two sacks. Khalil Mack, battling injuries, also had two sacks. They stopped the Browns on two fourth down and short yardage situations with sacks. The problem is, with the offense continually going three and out, the defense was on the field for 40 minutes.

The biggest problem with the Bears is Matt Nagy.  He was brought in to rejuvenate the offense and has failed miserably. They average 18 points per game. He failed in developing Mitch Trubisky. Therefore, I am worried he will ruin Fields. I know it is wishful thinking, but Nagy has to be let go before the season is totally lost. Fields will never be the QB they envisioned as long as Nagy is his coach.

Bears Win But Don't Get Too Excited

 

September 20, 2021

Things got a little scary at the end as the Bears held on to edge the Cincinnati Bengals 20-17. The Bears didn’t win this game as much as the Bengals lost it.  However, don’t get too excited. This is one the games the Bears were supposed to win as the Bengals are one of the few teams worse than they are.

The defense was the primary reason for the Bears victory. It seemed they turned back the clock to 2018 forcing four Bengal turnovers. The first was a fumble forced by Eddie Jackson, which Tashaun Gipson recovered. Bengals QB Joe Burrows , had thrown 199 passes without an interception when he was picked off by Bears linebacker Roquan Smith who ran it in for a touchdown. Smith who is one of the best linebackers in the NFL also had one the Bears four sacks. On his next pass Burrows was intercepted by second year cornerback
Jaylon Johnson, one of GM Ryan Pace’s better draft picks. On the next series Alec Ogeltree replacing Eddie Goldman at nose tackle, hit Burrows forcing another interception by backup defensive lineman Angelo Blackson. Khalil Mack also had a strong and got his first sack of the year. Lo and behold, Robert Quinn had a sack.

Bears starting QB Andy Dalton, was on fire to start the game. He completed 6 of 7 passes on a 75 yard touchdown drive, capped by a TD pass to Allen Robinson.  He also had a couple of nice runs. That was about it for offensive guru Matt Nagy’s offense. Dalton looked good on his second drive before injuring himself running out of bounds.

Justin Fields took over and had some rookie struggles that can easily be corrected. He had two false start penalties, recovered his own fumble and threw a costly interception leading to a Cincinnati touchdown.. He showed a strong arm and should have had a touchdown reception that Robinson uncharacteristically dropped in the end zone. The Bear defense was setting up the offense in good position. However, when they got close to the end zone they had to settle for field goals. There are two areas that cause major headaches. Offensive genius Nagy can’t get creative enough to get them into the end zone. He doesn’t even consider a run pass option. Once again the Bears had a third and two and couldn’t get a first down, running he ball twice.

Back to Fields. He did his part to save the day. With a little over two minutes to go the Bears faced a third down and nine. Fields broke two tackles and got a first down.  I don’t know if Fields starts next week but it his time will come sooner rather than later.  With the weak offensive line Nagy will need to call roll-out pass options to avid the rush and keep his quarterbacks healthy.   

Not Ready For Prime Time

 

September 13, 2021

The Chicago Bears made it close, trailing only 13-7 at halftime. The L.A. Rams outscored the Bears 21-7 in the second half and routed the Bears 34-14. I can’t understand why NBC would choose to televise a game between a Super Bowl contender and a really bad Bears team. The Bears’ flaws I envisioned were in full bloom Sunday night.

I’m not used to a Bears defense surrendering 34 points. With no pressure whatsoever, Rams QB Matt Stafford carved up the Bear defense. He completed 20 of 26 for 321 yards and 3 touchdowns. He had an incredible 123 passer rating. The third offensive play by the Rams was a harbinger of things to come. Stafford connected on a 67 yard touchdown to Van Jefferson. Jefferson caught the ball at the 12 yard line. Safeties Tashaun Gipson and Eddie Jackson failed to touch him down and Jefferson got up and ran into the end zone. Stafford then picked apart the Bears secondary, leading to two field goals, putting them ahead 13-0. Among the three Ram touchdowns in the second half was a 56 yard bomb to Cooper Kupp. Eddie Jackson was in a different time zone than the wide open Kupp.  The Bears overvalued Jackson and rewarded him with a 5 year, multi-million dollar deal. Just think, if the Bears offered less and dumped TE Jimmy Graham’s $7 million dollar deal, they could have resigned All-Pro cornerback Kyle Fuller.

Once again offensive guru Matt Nagy’s offense failed to reach 20 points. Bears QB Andy Dalton completed 27 of 38 for 206 yards.  That averages to a paltry 7.5 yards per completion. The problem is not the quarterbacks, it's Nagy’s system. Running back David Montgomery had a great game gaining 108 yards. However, Nagy only ran him 16 times. His 6.75 yards average per carry were longer than most pass attempts. He also caught a pass out the backfield that gained 13 yards, yet Nagy didn’t call that play for the rest of the night. Rookie QB Justin Fields came in and completed a nine yard pass, something Dalton failed to do. Fields also scored a touchdown. No matter, Dalton probably starts next week.

Some of Nagy’s decisions were mind numbing. The Bears have trouble on fourth down when needing only one yard. Nagy inexplicably went twice on fourth and six, turning the ball over on both occasions. The one time he punted, the Rams were buried inside their ten yard line which led to a Bear touchdown. What’s amazing, the Bears could have cut the lead to ten with a field goal. Instead, Nagy went for a first down on fourth needing 15 yards. This blew up as well. Wait there’s more! With the Bears trailing, they needed the ball. It seemed as if the Rams were going to settle for a field goal. However, Nagy accepts a 10 yard penalty replaying third down, wasting valuable time. On third and 17, the Rams gain a first down. With 7 minutes to go and trailing by 20 points Nagy sends Dalton on the field. This would been an excellent time to put Fields in.

The offense isn’t going to get better with Dalton. Fields should start now. He can be real good especially if he changes Nagy’s play call at the line. The defense is no longer the Bears calling card. They will get beat up by good offensive teams, like next week’s Cincinnati Bengals.

Bear Down and Cover Your Eyes

 

September 6, 2021

L

Last year the Bears backed into the playoffs finishing at 8-8. They lost 21-9 scoring their lone touchdown on the last play of the game.

The asinine decision to bring Matt Nagy back as coach boggles the mind. He was hired to rejuvenate the offense and develop Mitch Trubisky. He has failed miserably on both accounts. He is hung up thinking he is a genius and that his offensive schemes are great. The problem is the Bears don’t score enough points to win. It is time for him install an offense that the players can execute instead of them “adjusting” to his system. He is also not a good game coach, calling plays that make you want to pull your hair out.  I’m just wondering how many times after a loss he will tell the media that “They had a great week of practice.”

With Trubisky gone, Nick Foles was the only quarterback on the roster. Once Carson Wentz was traded to the Colts, the Bears went into fantasy land. The Bears thought they had a shot at Houston’s DeShaun Watson or Seattle’s Russell Wilson. Watson was accused of alleged sexual abuse and Wilson wasn’t on the trading block. In desperation, the Bears acquired Andy Dalton. This would have excited me five years ago, his last winning season. The Bears also drafted a possible franchise QB, Justin Fields who will sit and watch Dalton. I wonder how long it will take Nagy to realize Fields is a better option.

The Bears have one of the best wide receivers, Allen Robinson, as well as Darnell Mooney, who had an outstanding rookie season. They have no other threats. Anthony Miller is gone. Nagy and GM Ryan Pace said he didn’t develop the way they were expecting. This would been hard to do from the bench and not calling plays for him. Tight End Cole Kmet had a nice rookie season and should improve. Nagy has to know he should get the majority of playing time over Jimmy Graham. David Montgomery had 1070 yards rushing which averages out to just under 67 yards per game. He averaged 4.3 yards per carry, which is pretty good. The problem is that Nagy can’t install a running game in his pass happy offense. Montgomery should be getting more touches. He is also great at catching the ball out of the backfield. Nagy continues to make the mistake on running Montgomery into the line in short yardage situations. 

Vic Fangio protégé Sean Desai, replaces the woeful Chuck Pagano as Defensive Coordinator. While the Bears’ calling card has always been their defense, there a myriad of question marks to see if that will still be the case. The front three has Akiem Hicks and Bilal Nichols on the ends. The hope is that nose tackle Eddie Goldman can return to the impact player he was in 2019. Outside linebacker Khalil Mack is still a dominant player and I don’t know if there is a better inside linebacker than Roquan Smith. The questions remain on the other side. Nine year veteran Alec Ogletree replaces the oft-injured Danny Trevathan and the Bears are hoping for a bounce back year for the underachieving Robert Quinn. Jaylon Johnson at cornerback, looked pretty good until he had a season ending injury. He is probably still learning. The other corner, a 2020 fifth round pick, Kindle Vildor has no experience. The Bears gave safety Eddie Jackson a contract extension for his “ball hawking” ability. Last year he had zero interceptions and no fumble recoveries. He is also a terrible tackler. The other safety is veteran Tashaun Gipson.

2019 sixth round pick, Duke Shelley, has the inside track to be the nickel back.

Kicker Cairo Santos may be this team’s MVP. The Bears have to settle for a lot of field goals. He has made people forget Robbie Gould converting on his last 27 kicks. Third string running back, Khalil Herbert will get a chance to replace Cordarrelle Patterson returning kickoffs.

The Bears will probably end up at best 9-8; not good enough to make the playoffs, not bad enough to get a good draft choice. If you’re read this column, let me know what you think about what the Bears’ record will be, post your predictions below.

It's the Best of Times and the Worst of Times

 

August 30 2021

With one month left in the regular season, the White Sox (76-56) still have a stranglehold on the Central Division. They lead the Indians by 10 games.  Now is the time to gain some momentum heading into the playoffs. They also still have chance to catch Houston for home field advantage.

The knock on the Sox is they can’t beat good teams. They just finished a stretch of 14 games against teams with winning records and went 7-7. Four of the losses were games when Tim Anderson was not in the line-up. Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert are back and are tearing the cover off the ball. Yasmani Grandal came back and continued the hot streak he was on before he went on the IL. These additions have also made Jose Abreu better. He got extremely hot in August. He has 27 homers and once again leads the majors with 101 RBI. The Sox now have one of the best offenses in the game. Also on a positive note, Dylan Cease, is learning how to pitch and should only get better.

The moves at the trading deadline are a mixed bag. Ryan Tepera was a good pick up. He throws strikes and has an unhittable slider, especially against right handed batters. New second baseman, Caesar Hernandez has won a gold glove. The problem is he is a weak link in the line-up. He has developed a lot of power with over 20 homers. This coincides with striking out, which he is doing at an alarming rate. Craig Kimbrel was acquired to solidify the bullpen, which is a key to post season success. He has been a mitigating disaster. Dallas Keuchel has also been awful. He has gone from being a number two starter to number five. I am sure he will get more starts to try to turn things around but I feel this is highly unlikely. As of now, Reynaldo Lopez is a better option. Tony LaRussa will probably make the wrong move, letting Keuchel start.

If you are tuning into the Cubs (57-75) to see if they win or lose, you are watching for the wrong reason.   Right now the focus should be on who you want to see on next year’s team. I would think the Cubs will have some September call ups. However, the Cubs farm system ranks in the lower half of baseball and I don’t hear any names of players in the system.

Looking ahead, there are a few things we know. Willson Contreras will be catching. Nico Hoerner and Nick Madrigal will be at shortstop and second base. Due to an albatross contract, Jason Hayward will be in right field. I think you can pencil in Patrick Wisdom at third. He has massive power and should be able to hit 40 homers per year. Right now he has 25 in 254 at bats but also has 111 strikeouts. Since he is only a rookie, maybe he can improve in this area. Wisdom is also exceptionally good defensively. Frank Schwindel at first base is hitting .344, though he has little power, unlike most first basemen. You might have Rafael Ortega in center as he has shown flashes of what he can do. Let there be no mistake, these are all stop gap moves. Schwindel is 29 years old and Wisdom and Ortega are 30 years old.

It’s remarkable that Kyle Hendricks is 14-6 for a team 18 games under .500. He is most likely coming back. It may behoove the Cubs to explore a trade in the off season. You can get some really good prospects for Hendricks. Starters Adbert Alzolay. Jason Steele and Keegan Thompson all need some seasoning. Zach Davies and Alec Mills are other options to round out the rotation.

To placate fans, Jed Hoyer refuses to admit this a rebuild. They do have the money to sign free agents, but next year is not the time. There are too many holes to fill. Therefore, a couple of free agents aren’t going to make you a contender. Judging by recent moves, I don’t think the Cubs will jump into the free agent market this year. Remember, patience is a virtue.