Chicago Bears still have three quarterback options after Andy Dalton signing by Ryan Heckman

Since Ryan Pace hired Matt Nagy three off-seasons ago, the Chicago Bears organization has been committed to doing whatever it takes to make the former Andy Reid assistant’s offensive philosophy work to perfection. The problem is that o matter who is taking snaps for the Bears, the end result has always been the same: another dud-like performance.

The Chicago Bears have had a bad quarterback play for a very long time.

The Bears are the only team in NFL history to never have a 4,000-yard passer in a single-season. They have been in quarterback-purgatory for the longest time. Maybe it has less to do with who the actual quarterback is and more to do with who is calling and designing all the plays.

Jay Cutler was as talented as any quarterback in the game yet he struggled because the supporting cast around him wasn’t very good and he never had a reliable offensive system in place.

Mitch Trubisky, who has been treated often like the “butt of all jokes” regarding quarterback play, has plenty of talent and ability. Yet, he never seemed to form the type of bond and chemistry needed with his “now former” head coach. Nagy’s patience with Trubisky often grew thin, mainly because the young signal-caller couldn’t seem to grasp all the ins and outs of Nagy’s offense.

Only for short spurts did Nagy’s offense come to life in a pleasant manner. When Trubisky was watching the offense from the sidelines due to injury or having been benched, the offense sputtered, even with Nagy’s disciples Chase Daniel and Nick Foles playing.

Bears fans and media pundits everywhere are displeased with Ryan Pace signing former three-time Pro Bowler, Andy Dalton to a one-year deal. That’s putting it mildly. Everyone was hoping that Pace would pull a rabbit out of his hat and somehow pull off a miracle in trading for Russell Wilson. Fans were justified to be upset when those rumored trade talks fell through.

Dalton, like Trubisky and Foles, has enjoyed some NFL success. He’s not an elite quarterback yet he’s not bad by any means. Dalton has won many games with one of the weaker franchises in the league, the Cincinnati Bengals. He has had a string of playoff appearances but no wins to show for it.

The organization is banking on Dalton’s familiarity with Bears’ offensive coordinator, Bill Lazor, to help lift a teetering offense up in 2021’s make-or-break season.

Even though Nagy ultimately handed over play-calling duties to Lazor, Nagy’s fingerprints are still all over this Bears’ offense. It wouldn’t surprise many if Nagy even took over as primary play-caller in 2021 again. He has too much pride in his offense to just sit back and do nothing.

If Dalton, like Foles, struggles next season as the starter you shouldn’t blame Dalton. It would fall to the feet of Nagy. Nagy has no more excuses for his offensive philosophy not working up to par. Having four seasons is plenty of time to get an offense operating on all cylinders consistently.

Related Story: Bears options after Andy Dalton signing

The roster has promising talent on the offensive side to at least be more competitive than what they’ve shown thus far in games. Maybe it’s been Nagy all along who has held the Bears back from greatness rather than the quarterback. It certainly feels that way, at least from the eye test.

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Nine Big Ten schools will compete in this year’s NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Yes, you read that right. Nine! This year’s record setting group of teams beats the Big Ten’s conference record from 2019 when eight schools competed in the March Madness tourney. Only the Big East has them beat for the record, as they had 11 schools receive a tournament bid back in 2011.

It’s clearly been a wild year for the Big Ten, but it’s been equally wild for the NCAA. Like all other sports leagues, the NCAA has had to deal with the challenges of the pandemic. And when it came to hosting the tournament this year, those challenges didn’t go away. For this year’s NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament, all teams and games will be in one city, Indianapolis. The details regarding the leagues healthy and safety protocols are intense, with strict routines for the players, limits on when they can leave their rooms, and thousands of COVID tests. We know who we’ll be rooting for come tournament time and we’ve got your back on just how far all these Big Ten teams could in March Madness this year!

Michigan State University – #11 | East Bracket

As the lowest seeded team in the Big Ten, Michigan State’s road to the title will be a tough one. As an 11 seeded team, the Spartans will have to play their way into the tournament this year as a First Four team. Their opponent will be the UCLA Bruins, and if they can edge them out they’ll face off against BYU in the Round of 64. The Big Ten’s last school to win it all will have the furthest road to get there again and we can see them getting to the round of 32 in March Madness this year.

University of Maryland – #10 | East Bracket

The University of Maryland will also be facing an uphill battle as they hold the 10th seed in the East bracket. Their opponent, 7th seeded UConn, hasn’t been in the tournament since 2015. In fact, the last time these two met in the postseason, Maryland won. That was the year Maryland won it all in 2002 back when they weren’t even part of the Big 10. Should they repeat their success against UConn, they might find themselves sneaking into the Sweet 16 after a potential matchup against Alabama (2) or Iona (15).

Rutgers University – #10 | Midwest bracket

Despite having the lower seed against their first round opponent, Clemson University, the Scarlet Knights are actually favored to win this matchup. Both Midwest bracket teams had roughly similar records at the end of their seasons. Rutgers finished at 15-11 and Clemson finished at 16-7. The big caveat is the competition level these two teams faced this year, as Rutgers is a Big Ten school and Clemson plays in the less difficult ACC. We have a hard time seeing Rutgers get past Houston (2) in the Round of 32 should they get that far in March Madness. 

University of Wisconsin – #9 | South bracket

NCAA basketball fans might be surprised to see Wisconsin (9) face-off against UNC (8), but after the crazy year we’ve all had it almost seems right. Sure, the higher seed is favored in this game but we all know how things can turnout in March. The biggest thorn in Wisconsin’s side will be the pressures that come from their recent play as they’ve lost six of their last eight. And if they can steal one from UNC, they’ll most likely find themselves against Baylor (1) in the Round of 32. We can’t predict them getting out of that one on top.

Purdue University – #4 | South bracket

Purdue has a couple of chalky matchups should they find themselves winning at the start of the tournament. In the first round they’ll play against North Texas (13) and then either Villanova (5) or Winthrop (12) if they move on. Their biggest challenge might be North Texas since they have a group of hungry seniors who missed out on last year’s tournament. A Sweet 16 appearance should be a minimum goal for this team.

University of Iowa – #2 | West bracket

Now we’re getting into some of the top Big Ten schools in this year’s tournament. With the 2 seed in the West bracket, the Iowa Hawkeyes could be looking at a deep tournament run that will start against Grand Canyon University (15) on Saturday. Senior big man, Luka Garza, will lead the way for this team that should make it to the Elite 8.

Ohio State University – #2 | South bracket

The Big Ten Conference Tournament’s runner-up is taking their two-seed as far as they can this season. We don’t want to say that a trip to the Sweet 16 is automatic, but it very well could be. Should the Buckeyes make it to the Final Four, they’ll almost certainly have to get through Baylor (1) to do so.

University of Michigan #1 | East bracket

The University of Michigan Men’s basketball team is the first of two top seeded Big Ten teams on our list. Led by freshman Center, Hunter Dickinson, this team is no joke. Playing in the Big Ten Conference is challenging on it’s own, but going 20-4 while doing it? Yeah, the Wolverines are good. They’re so good, they’re already starting to give Vegas some headaches. We wouldn’t be surprised to see them take the court in the championship game against the last Big Ten school on our list…

University of Illinois #1 | Midwest bracket

The championship. Do we need to say more? You’d be hard pressed to find an Illinois basketball fan who hasn’t bet the farm on this team. After missing out on last year’s NCAA tournament, the Illini are hungry. Naismith Men’s Player of the Year candidate, Ayo Dosunmu will lead the way this March for the blue and orange. He helped them secure the Big Ten trophy, and now he’ll have his shot at claiming the Big Dance crown in his final college season.

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“Chingón is Spanish slang for ‘badass,’ ” says Marcos Ascencio, one of three chefs behind a new Logan Square taqueria of the same name. “It’s used a lot in Hispanic kitchens. My parents were like, ‘Really? You’re calling it that?’ ” Chefs who make tacos as good as Taqueria Chingón’s veggie al pastor ($4) can call their restaurant whatever they want. In that taco, Ascencio and partners Sotero Gallegos (La Sardine) and Oliver Poilevey (Le Bouchon) invert the porky classic by subbing in mushrooms and celery root. Shockingly meaty-tasting, the vegan taco is decked out with avocado salsa and pineapple.

They don’t stop there — they’re constantly putting luxe ingredients like truffles, sweetbreads, and foie gras into housemade tortillas and taking inspiration from the restaurants they’ve worked in. The costilla ($5.50) is based on a pasta with pork, hazelnuts, and herbs that Ascencio made at Bar Lupo, while the duck carnitas with chicharrón and orange ($5) is a play on the French favorite duck à l’orange. Yet amid all this inventiveness, Ascencio’s favorite taco, the al pastor ($5), doesn’t stray far from tradition. “I love coming up with new ideas,” he says. “But I also love keeping it simple.” 2234 N. Western Ave.

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Chicago Bears 7-Round Mock Draft: A post-Andy Dalton dilemma by Ryan Heckman

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Chicago Bears (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Some might think the Chicago Bears are done at quarterback after signing Andy Dalton, but that is far from reality.

Sure, the reports came out on Tuesday about the Bears bringing in “their starter” with Dalton. However, it does not seem as though Dalton will be the guy who saves multiple jobs in Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy.

Pace has made questionable moves in the past, but one has to believe he is at the point in his tenure with the Bears where he knows this is his last shot. There is not a soul alive who believes Dalton is going to be the answer to Pace keeping his position in Chicago.

To begin with, Dalton might be a solid option to start the season. He may even be a better bridge than Nick Foles would have been. The move feels a lot like trading for Foles a year ago, though.

What’s curious is that Pace had an opportunity to sign Dalton last offseason, but instead chose to trade a fourth rounder to acquire Foles from Jacksonville. Now, a year later, he signs Dalton. It’s definitely a puzzling move, to put it nicely.

Now, the Bears move forward with two veterans in Foles and Dalton. Are they done? Is that their quarterback room for the 2021 season? Again, if that’s what Pace and Nagy are counting on, they’re in for yet another season of mediocrity.

As we are in the thick of NFL free agency and approach the 2021 NFL Draft, we can clearly see there are still options for the Bears at quarterback. There are three specific moves they could make in which Dalton ends up being either a short-term bandaid or even an eventual backup.

Let’s start with the most common question following Dalton’s signing, and that’s the curious case of Nick Foles.

Next: 1: A Nick Foles trade

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The Chicago Bears should be ashamed of themselves by Vincent Parise

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Chicago Bears (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Tuesday, the Chicago Bears made a quarterback move. But, it wasn’t the big splash fans were hoping for.

For about 24-48 hours, there was smoke coming from the rumor mill. This time, it was veteran quarterback Andy Dalton being connected to Chicago. While fans were hoping for the best, yet bracing for the worst, general manager Ryan Pace was figuring out the nitty gritty details.

To the fan base’s dismay, the Bears inked Dalton to a 1-year deal to presumably be the team’s starting quarterback for the 2021 season.

If you thought Allen Robinson was upset before this week, don’t ask him how he’s feeling now.

The Bears now have Dalton and Nick Foles under contract for this upcoming season, so now what?

The Chicago Bears should not hesitate to go after a first-round quarterback.

Let’s assume Pace understands this is his last chance, and also assumes that Dalton and Foles will not save his job. Sure, that may be a big assumption, but just go with it.

Neither one of them will lead this team to anything beyond another 8-8 season full of mediocrity. It’s not happening. As much as some of us fans can try and talk ourselves into a silver lining, the end result of the 2021 season will still be what we’ve grown accustomed to: quarterback purgatory.

The Bears did themselves a disservice by making the playoffs this past season, as they have to try and figure out how to land a quarterback with the no. 20 overall pick. But, in our latest mock draft, the strategy doesn’t change.

It’s time to go up and get a quarterback, even with Dalton on board. Go big or go home.

Next: Round 1, Pick 9

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It is typical in the life of a Chicago Bears fan to be ashamed of the team. They haven’t achieved greatness in over 30 years outside of a few one-and-done seasons. It has been in large part due to their suspect offense being unable to overcome bad quarterback play. Their defense and running game are […]

The Chicago Bears should be ashamed of themselves – Da Windy City – Da Windy City – A Chicago Sports Site – Bears, Bulls, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Fighting Illini & More

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This week’s featured gig poster was created by Justin Gray, an illustrator and designer from New Jersey.

This week’s featured gig poster was made for Wyoming pop-punk band Teenage Bottlerocket, whose annual Birthday Bash will be livestreamed this year with the help of the people at Riot Fest.…Read More

In 2018 Nick Cave opened a new portal into his world with a question-and-answer newsletter titled the Red Hand Files. As queries from fans flooded in, Cave dutifully replied with poetic meditations, splashy Polaroids of his opulent Brighton home, and the occasional errant one-liner that shed new light on the mystique that he’s meticulously cultivated for 40-plus years.…Read More