The Chicago Bears head coach tried to warn us.
At one point in the season, the Chicago Bears were 5-1 and a game out of the No. 1 overall seed in the entire NFC. Just six weeks and five games later, they are 5-6 and reeling after five straight losses, including their most recent de-pantsing by the Green Bay Packers on national television.
Some might be surprised by this downward spiral. Many of us knew what this team was after just a couple of weeks of the season — yours truly included.
Yet, there were some who are either the most optimistic Bears fans, or were holding out hope despite clear evidence that this team was monumentally flawed.
That evidence included the words of the head coach, Matt Nagy, who is now fighting tooth and nail to salvage his job less than two years removed from winning the Coach of the Year award.
Therefore, anyone who listened closely to his press conferences early in the season would have seen — and heard — the warning signs that this team was headed towards an implosion.
Just after their Week 5 primetime matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Bears sat at 4-1. Optimism was probably at an all-time high, having just taken down the immortal Tom Brady. However, the following day Nagy ripped the performance of his offense who frankly had underperformed to that point.
Nagy criticized their lack of attention to detail and expressed his displeasure for how the offense’s mental lapses would routinely put their team in unfavorable positions.
Candidly, it was refreshing to hear some level of accountability from an organization that typically treats its players with kid-gloves. However, in hindsight, this wasn’t just about holding his players to a higher standard. It was truly a portent of things to come.
Nagy knew his defense was playing at a playoff, and possibly even a championship-caliber. He knew his reputation was on the line having gone all-in on Nick Foles. He also knew time would eventually run out as would the fans’ patience. So his comments back in early October were from a man who caught a glimpse into his future and knew if this offense didn’t turn things around, he would be exactly where he is right now.
Unfortunately for him, the unit never played with the sense of urgency, attention to detail, or level of competence needed to right the ship, and now he may be thrown off of it at season’s end.
