Matt Nagy wants the Chicago Bears to have a clear offensive identity.
Many fans would argue that the Chicago Bears failed to have an offensive identity last season. Those same fans might suggest that many of Mitchell Trubisky‘s problems last year were due to this lack of “identity.”
Others would claim that the lack of offensive identity was not a cause of Mitch’s issues but a consequence of them. In other words, the identity was limited by what Trubisky was able to handle.
Regardless of where you fall on that spectrum, there is one undeniable truth — the quarterback is inextricably tied to the offensive identity.
So it was interesting to hear the head coach say recently that “the No. 1 thing we talked about doing is we have to have an identity on offense. I don’t think, necessarily, last year you could say we had an identity.”
This is not a new theme for the head coach, as he’s repeated this refrain in 2018 and earlier this year.
For the moment, let’s put aside the fact that he is the head coach and has control over establishing that identity. Assuming, theoretically, he is able to do that, practically speaking that task is incredibly difficult without knowing who the quarterback is.
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And as of right now, the Chicago Bears do not have an answer to that question. They currently sit 11 days from the first game of the season and only a few days from when they would normally begin to install the game plan for that week’s game.
But they can’t, because again, they don’t know who the quarterback is going to be. However, it goes beyond preparation for game one. The team’s identity will certainly vary depending on whether Trubisky or Nick Foles is under center. Foles is obviously less mobile and more of a pure pocket passer. Trubisky will need to be rolled out where he can take advantage of his legs and cut the field in half to simplify his reads.
Moreover, it would seem that Nagy would likely run the ball more with Trubisky under center to help mask some of his deficiencies, while he may feel more comfortable letting Foles sling it and run his RPO offense.
So while in theory, talking about “establishing an identity” sounds great, none of that can happen until the Bears make the most important decision of the offseason.