Chicago Bears: Matt Nagy desperate enough to consider giving up calling plays

The Chicago Bears are desperate to make changes, Matt Nagy included.

Before their Week 7 game against the Los Angeles Rams, the Chicago Bears were flying high. They were 5-1 and on top of the NFC. Sure, they had some problems offensively but they found ways to win, and winning is all that matters.

Well, fast-forward three weeks and the Bears have yet to win a game. They are now 5-4 and out of the playoff picture. The offense looks worse than it ever has and now injuries and COVID is ravaging the offensive line.

These are desperate times for Chicago. They need to reverse things and to do it right away. They’re still in second place in the NFC North, but they have games against their three division foes over the next three games. If they cannot fix their problems, they could find themselves back in the division’s basement, a place occupied from 2014-17.

The players are putting pressure on themselves to turn things around. They know how bad things are and don’t want it to continue. It seems like they’re getting tight and now they’re playing not to lose instead of playing to win.

It isn’t only the Chicago Bears players who are desperate

The players aren’t the ones feeling all the pressure, however. The coaching staff, in particular head coach Matt Nagy, is feeling desperation.

One of the biggest problems on the offense has been the playcalling. Nagy has called all of the plays since he arrived in Chicago in 2018. While the magic of 2018 covered a lot of deficiencies, those deficiencies were uncovered last season and into this one.

The running game has been a problem since Nagy came to town. Despite ranking sixth in rushing attempts in 2018, they still ranked 27th in average yards per rush. Last season, they ranked 20th in rushing attempts and 29th in average yards per rush. This season, they rank 31st in rushing attempts and 29th in average yards per rush.

Nagy continues to say that he isn’t an idiot and that he knows the offense has to run more. When the games begin, however, he reverts back to form and gets pass-happy. When the Bears run the ball, they have some success. In the first three games, the Bears ran the ball 85 times (an average of 28.3 rushes per game) and gained 414 yards. That is an average of 4.9 yards per rush. They had at least 130 yards in each game.

In the past six games, though, Nagy has forgotten about the running game. The offense has run the ball just 115 times in the last six games (an average of 19.2 rushes per game). They’ve gained just 327 yards for an average of 2.8 yards per rush. Yet Nagy continues to say he understands that the Bears need to run more.

What started as whispers about maybe Nagy giving up calling the plays are now full-out screams. Reporters are now constantly asking him questions about playcalling. Nagy has been stubborn about not even considering giving up playcalling to offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. He kept insisting that playcalling wasn’t the problem.

That changed after the latest loss, however. When asked again about playcalling he said this, per NFL.com: “I’m looking at all that right now.”

That may not seem like much, but considering that he’s been adamant that playcalling hasn’t been a problem this statement is huge. He also said that if/when he decided to give up playcalling he wouldn’t announce it. As a result, the media and fans will look at the sideline to see who is calling the plays.

Some people look at the offensive line as the main problem and that no improvement in playcalling will help. Well, let’s take a look at the Tennessee Titan’s game before they played the Bears. They faced the Cincinnati Bengals, who were missing four of their five starting offensive linemen. They then lost another lineman in the game. Despite that, the Bengals threw for 249 yards and rushed for 118 yards, and won the game, 31-20.

It’s good to see Nagy at least consider giving up playcalling. He has the experience with his mentor, Andy Reid, to lean on. In 2017, the Kansas City Chiefs were in an offensive rut with Reid calling plays. He turned over the playcalling to Nagy and the Chiefs went on a tear. He needs to remember that lesson, set aside his ego as Reid did, and see what Lazor can do.

If Nagy doesn’t, and the offense continues to struggle, this will be another lost season for the Chicago Bears, who might find themselves back in the cellar.