The Chicago Bears have named former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy the team’s 16th head coach in franchise history.
Ryan Pace and the Chicago Bears have announced that Matt Nagy will be the next head coach of the Chicago Bears. Nagy, 39, was the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs, yet only called plays for the last five games of the 2017 season.
The Bears interviewed Nagy on Sunday, the day after the Chiefs offense collapsed in their Wild Card loss to the Tennessee Titans. Nagy was in the mix for the Indianapolis Colts opening, so Pace had to move quick to get the deal done.
Nagy was instrumental in the development of Alex Smith turning into a potential MVP candidate this season. The Chiefs offensive performance against the Titans puts a bit of a sour note on this hire, but Nagy should not be judged simply on one bad half of football. The Bears needed an offensive mind to help the maturation process of Mitchell Trubisky, and Pace apparently believes Nagy is the right coach for the job.
There were several reports in April that the Chiefs thought very highly of Trubisky, likely meaning that Nagy holds the young quarterback in high regards. This season with the Chiefs, Nagy not only helped Alex Smith, but also helped develop quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the 15th overall pick in the 2017 draft.
Nagy has worked under Andy Reid since 2010 with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Reid coaching tree is very impressive, as Sean McDermott, Ron Rivera, Doug Pederson and John Harbaugh are just some of the assistants under Reid that have flourished as head coaches.
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As much as anyone wants to predict how Nagy will do as a head coach, the reality is, no one really knows. None of us sat in on the interview, so we don’t really know Nagy’s philosophies and how he’ll be in the locker room. So whether you like the hire or not, as Bears fans, we should all give Nagy a chance. Here’s hoping Nagy has a long and successful run as the Chicago Bears head coach.