It was a move that needed to happen, and no one was surprised when it did. If anything, it took far too long to happen. The Bears offense sputtered and sputtered, year after year, for four long seasons under Nagy.
This was an easy call for ownership. However, the one move that fans also wanted to happen, looked as though it might not — and that involved general manager Ryan Pace. By most accounts, Pace was going to stick around and even get promoted. However, the Bears shocked the football world by doing the right thing instead.
In a surprising move, the Chicago Bears not only fired head coach Matt Nagy, but also general manager Ryan Pace.
The #Bears also fired GM Ryan Pace, per sources.
Total overhaul in Chicago.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 10, 2022
Firing Ryan Pace comes as a total shock, believe it or not.
Think about it this way: Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune is one of the closest guys to the organization. He is highly respected and very rarely wrong. Out of any Bears beat reporters, Biggs is the one to trust.
Even Biggs suggested the Bears were thinking of promoting Pace.
That move likely would have seen Pace take the role of Ted Phillips, with Phillips moving to a different non-football type of role.
If that would have happened, most fans probably could have stomached the transition. But, instead, fans get exactly what they wanted — most fans, at least.
For some reason, there is still a crowd out there who defends Pace and wanted him back.