Problem with Nagy and Problem with Pace

[dll2000]

Good, Bad and the Ugly

Unfortunately I don't have time due to crazy work day to expound on this like I would like today.  But I will come back around to it more over next week.

I argue the main problem with Nagy's coaching isn't the plays.   He runs the same plays as a lot of other guys.   It is execution of the plays or lack thereof and adjustments within said plays to adapt to circumstance, the way he practices, the way he teaches, his chosen role within the team and his game plans.  

For example you have a play and you draw it up with the your Os and their Xs.      But if one of the Xs is **** Butkus that changes things.  You have to have a plan for **** Butkus.  This is where Nagy fails a lot.   He just runs the play as drawn.   Next level coaching is about nuance.   

  Alexander the Great didn't just win battles with amazing plans.  His troops were very well trained and could do a lot of things independently.  Both he and they could adjust to changing circumstances on the fly.   Their officers could adjust as well.  Football is similar in concept.  

For years I have watched Nagy's teams miss moving blocks and assignments and exhibit poor fundamentals.   I think this goes back to way he prepares team.

It is a lack of attention to detail, details that matter anyway, that seperates good coaches from bad coaches.

It is small nuances that separate you from others.   To an outside observer like a beat reporter it isn't noticeable, because this practice looks like another practice.   But to me it is very noticeable.   I went to just one practice in 2019, but I could see the problems.   Because I have been to 1000s of other practices from various coaches from excellent to poor and I study the differences between the good ones and the just okay ones and the way they do things.

More later ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

[malak1]

He's gotta go, like...yesterday. Literally. 

[beardown3231]

12 minutes ago, malak1 said:

They gotta go, like...yesterday. Literally. 

Fixed

[Bfan]

Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he called plays in all of 6 games before he was hired by the Bears and that was with Reid looking over his sholder.  You would have thought he would have absorbed more about the offense in the year plus he was KC OC before that but apparently not.

[soulman]

Since we're discussing play calling I thought this might be of interest so I'll insert it here.

 

Oestmann: This is Deeper Than Play-Calling for Matt Nagy.

Jeff Hughes | September 27th, 2021

Adam Oestmann was a colleague of DBB during our ill-fated period at ChicagoNow. But he’s a writer I’ve always admired and a genuinely good dude. Thrilled to publish his thoughts here.

---

It didn’t take long after the Bears hired Matt Nagy in 2018 for the media to label him the offensive guru Chicago football fans had been hoping for. The former Chiefs’ offensive coordinator had spent just a single season in that role, and only part of it calling plays. Nevertheless, the Chiefs ranked among the NFL’s best when it came to scoring points that season, finishing sixth in the league, and Nagy, it seemed, was poised to turn the tide in Chicago.

That was 2018.

Three years and into a fourth season later and – when it comes to scoring points at least – Nagy is, statistically, one of the worst offensive head coaches in the history of this franchise. Nagy’s 2019, 2020 and, thus far, 2021 points-per-game rank among the worst for the team. Ever. It would seem the offensive-minded quarterbacks guru the Bears thought they were getting didn’t exist from Jump Street.

Following a three-game losing streak and heading into a Week 10 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings last season, a reluctant Nagy relinquished play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. The Bears went on to lose to the Vikings 19-13, but an interesting thing began to happen that cannot be seen on a stats page: the Bears’ offense seemed to be forming an identity. Finishing the regular season 8-8, the team earned a Wild Card playoff berth before being knocked out by the 12-4 Saints.

Bill Lazor’s calls, it turned out, were good for more than a touchdown per game over Nagy’s (on average). In a league where many games are decided by less, Lazor’s eight points-above-replacement number was significant. If Nagy had been able to find those eight points earlier in the season, his team might have won as many as three more games.

But let’s not get too lost in the weeds.

The point is the Bears’ offense got better without Matt Nagy calling plays. Even when they failed to come away with a victory, fans could see an identity and understood their team’s path to victory.

With Nagy at the helm through three games this season, Chicago’s offense once again resembles an early 1900s hit-and-miss engine (emphasis on the miss). There’s no rhythm, little adjustment, and zero margin for error. And it all leaves Bears fans with a sinking feeling in their collective gut that, once again, their team is headed nowhere.

So who is going to right the ship and take this team and its exciting young quarterback anywhere but nowhere? Because as things stand today, with the Bears looking to recover from an embarrassing 26-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 3, Nagy is still at the helm. And the problem facing the Bears’ top brass is how to trust the guy whose job it is to steer the ship, to admit that he’s not capable of doing so. At least when it comes to play-calling.

To be fair to Nagy, he was able to swallow his pride, at least temporarily, when he handed the reigns over to Lazor in 2020. But when the dust had finally settled and fans were ready to be excited again – thanks largely to the miracle drafting of Justin Fields – Nagy picked up his trusty “Be You” play sheet and decided it had all just been a bad dream.

And now the head coach of the Chicago Bears is at a crossroads once again. Being him hasn’t produced results. Any objective observer would agree it’s not unreasonable for Bears fans to conclude that Matt Nagy is not the offensive guru they were sold. And yet Nagy’s identity as a coach in the NFL seems to be directly tied to the concept of being a play-caller. When he surrendered those duties to Lazor in 2020, he had this to say about it: “I’d be lying to every one of you guys if I told you that this is easy. It’s not. It’s not easy. It’s one of my favorite parts of coaching. I love calling plays. I love it.”

Those who have faced an identity crisis in their lives, personally or professionally, know just how devastating it can be when the thing you’ve built your identity on comes crashing down. It’s takes a lot of humility and self-awareness to move on and start over. Which is why the issue at hand is deeper than just play-calling. Nagy believes he’s a play-caller. There’s just one problem: he’s not good at it.

[brownie man]

Y’all need to give Lazor the calling. He’s not amazing but he’s not Nagy bad. 
 

Why is Nagy still employed? There’s so way he gets to call another game for Justin. 
 

Justin is going to start losing faith in the franchise if you all allow Nagy to continue calling plays. 

[beardown3231]

2 hours ago, brownie man said:

Y’all need to give Lazor the calling. He’s not amazing but he’s not Nagy bad. 
 

Why is Nagy still employed? There’s so way he gets to call another game for Justin. 
 

Justin is going to start losing faith in the franchise if you all allow Nagy to continue calling plays. 

Well it's Wednesday and he's still employed, so there's 100% a way that he's calling another game for Fields

[BEAR FACE DOWN ARROW]

1 hour ago, beardown3231 said:

Well it's Wednesday and he's still employed, so there's 100% a way that he's calling another game for Fields

Sounds like they're having a presser today, maybe he's going to say they're starting Foles to run the offense. OR. Maybe he's stepping down as playcaller. OR. Maybe Nagy and Pace have 4 year extensions.

[dll2000]

6 hours ago, soulman said:

Since we're discussing play calling I thought this might be of interest so I'll insert it here.

 

Oestmann: This is Deeper Than Play-Calling for Matt Nagy.

Jeff Hughes | September 27th, 2021

Adam Oestmann was a colleague of DBB during our ill-fated period at ChicagoNow. But he’s a writer I’ve always admired and a genuinely good dude. Thrilled to publish his thoughts here.

---

It didn’t take long after the Bears hired Matt Nagy in 2018 for the media to label him the offensive guru Chicago football fans had been hoping for. The former Chiefs’ offensive coordinator had spent just a single season in that role, and only part of it calling plays. Nevertheless, the Chiefs ranked among the NFL’s best when it came to scoring points that season, finishing sixth in the league, and Nagy, it seemed, was poised to turn the tide in Chicago.

That was 2018.

Three years and into a fourth season later and – when it comes to scoring points at least – Nagy is, statistically, one of the worst offensive head coaches in the history of this franchise. Nagy’s 2019, 2020 and, thus far, 2021 points-per-game rank among the worst for the team. Ever. It would seem the offensive-minded quarterbacks guru the Bears thought they were getting didn’t exist from Jump Street.

Following a three-game losing streak and heading into a Week 10 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings last season, a reluctant Nagy relinquished play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. The Bears went on to lose to the Vikings 19-13, but an interesting thing began to happen that cannot be seen on a stats page: the Bears’ offense seemed to be forming an identity. Finishing the regular season 8-8, the team earned a Wild Card playoff berth before being knocked out by the 12-4 Saints.

Bill Lazor’s calls, it turned out, were good for more than a touchdown per game over Nagy’s (on average). In a league where many games are decided by less, Lazor’s eight points-above-replacement number was significant. If Nagy had been able to find those eight points earlier in the season, his team might have won as many as three more games.

But let’s not get too lost in the weeds.

The point is the Bears’ offense got better without Matt Nagy calling plays. Even when they failed to come away with a victory, fans could see an identity and understood their team’s path to victory.

With Nagy at the helm through three games this season, Chicago’s offense once again resembles an early 1900s hit-and-miss engine (emphasis on the miss). There’s no rhythm, little adjustment, and zero margin for error. And it all leaves Bears fans with a sinking feeling in their collective gut that, once again, their team is headed nowhere.

So who is going to right the ship and take this team and its exciting young quarterback anywhere but nowhere? Because as things stand today, with the Bears looking to recover from an embarrassing 26-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 3, Nagy is still at the helm. And the problem facing the Bears’ top brass is how to trust the guy whose job it is to steer the ship, to admit that he’s not capable of doing so. At least when it comes to play-calling.

To be fair to Nagy, he was able to swallow his pride, at least temporarily, when he handed the reigns over to Lazor in 2020. But when the dust had finally settled and fans were ready to be excited again – thanks largely to the miracle drafting of Justin Fields – Nagy picked up his trusty “Be You” play sheet and decided it had all just been a bad dream.

And now the head coach of the Chicago Bears is at a crossroads once again. Being him hasn’t produced results. Any objective observer would agree it’s not unreasonable for Bears fans to conclude that Matt Nagy is not the offensive guru they were sold. And yet Nagy’s identity as a coach in the NFL seems to be directly tied to the concept of being a play-caller. When he surrendered those duties to Lazor in 2020, he had this to say about it: “I’d be lying to every one of you guys if I told you that this is easy. It’s not. It’s not easy. It’s one of my favorite parts of coaching. I love calling plays. I love it.”

Those who have faced an identity crisis in their lives, personally or professionally, know just how devastating it can be when the thing you’ve built your identity on comes crashing down. It’s takes a lot of humility and self-awareness to move on and start over. Which is why the issue at hand is deeper than just play-calling. Nagy believes he’s a play-caller. There’s just one problem: he’s not good at it.

Because he knows if he isn’t calling plays it gets to point of what is he doing?

Like scene from Office Space, “What would you say you do here, Bob?”

”I’m a people person. I work with people!”

[dll2000]

I feel bad for Nagy.  The entire sports media world is hammering him.  A dozen you tubers are doing same.  And every fan is screaming on message boards and social media that he is the worst.

That is not a good week to have.  I thought I had a bad day at work yesterday.  I should count my blessings.

[dll2000]

4 hours ago, brownie man said:

Y’all need to give Lazor the calling. He’s not amazing but he’s not Nagy bad. 
 

Why is Nagy still employed? There’s so way he gets to call another game for Justin. 
 

Justin is going to start losing faith in the franchise if you all allow Nagy to continue calling plays. 

As if we are in charge of that.  Most people here thought they should have started over last offseason with new GM, coach and QB.  

Now looking like a new coach will have to  come in with a QB in 2nd year.  What a stupid way to do things.  We are new Browns.  

[beardown3231]

16 minutes ago, dll2000 said:

I feel bad for Nagy.  The entire sports media world is hammering him.  A dozen you tubers are doing same.  And every fan is screaming on message boards and social media that he is the worst.

That is not a good week to have.  I thought I had a bad day at work yesterday.  I should count my blessings.

And then he sees his weekly direct deposit & drives his likely-60k-car to his likely-1M-house and sleeps just fine

[blkwdw13]

32 minutes ago, dll2000 said:

I feel bad for Nagy.  The entire sports media world is hammering him.  A dozen you tubers are doing same.  And every fan is screaming on message boards and social media that he is the worst.

That is not a good week to have.  I thought I had a bad day at work yesterday.  I should count my blessings.

Why feel bad for him, he puts himself in these positions with his nonsense interviews and coaching habits that haven't changed despite the rotating carousel of players. At least they didn't have an egg toss competition this year, well at least that we know of.

[soulman]

36 minutes ago, dll2000 said:

I feel bad for Nagy.  The entire sports media world is hammering him.  A dozen you tubers are doing same.  And every fan is screaming on message boards and social media that he is the worst.

That is not a good week to have.  I thought I had a bad day at work yesterday.  I should count my blessings.

You think it's been bad so far?

Nagy announced a presser for today and the bulk of the Tweets are hoping, praying even, it's to announce his resignation. 

Happy "Hump Day" Matt.

[dll2000]

1 hour ago, beardown3231 said:

And then he sees his weekly direct deposit & drives his likely-60k-car to his likely-1M-house and sleeps just fine

That certainly helps.   No one likes to publicly fail though.

I coached a bad team once and it was miserable so I have empathy.   

 League changed weight rules for division I was coaching that year and my org. didn't know about it.   League didn't put it in on website or anywhere.   You had to attend a league meeting to know and my org. didn't send a rep. to find out about this major rule change.   I found out at our first weigh in and I was not happy.   

On top of that my org. decided to not let me have any "older lighters" that year which are older boys that can play down by league rule because they are small.   They are a huge advantage at skill positions and team speed.  

So I had a team in the elite competitive division that was 25% smaller than every other team (most everyone tops out at weight limit for elite division) and had no speed.  We were small and slow.   Good luck with that.   

We won like 2 games.  I have never had a losing season as a coach prior to that.  In fact nearly every year I coached for any team we were first or second place.  I coached only team to win it all in most competitive division in local org. history.    One year we lost in playoffs, but had an undefeated reg. season also in most competitive division.  

Those parents didn't care about my history or know it really.  Some did.   They called me stupid and jeered me at games.  Tried to have me fired.  Demanded I change schemes twice.  Change kids positions.  Whole 9 yards.   Other years I was genius.  LOL.   I guess I lost a lot of IQ points that year to go from genius to total moron.  Life of a coach even at low levels.   

Let me tell you it doesn't feel good.