First and foremost the the Chicago Bears wanted to retain Vic Fangio because he’s a damn good defensive coordinator. Arguably one of the best in the business. In case people need a reminder, here’s one. In 2017 the Bears fielded the #10 ranked defense in the NFL. Oh, and they did that without a single one of its players reaching the Pro Bowl.
That speaks to top notch coaching. Fangio has done this job for a long time. He’s gotten really good at it. The Bears know this and made sure to pay top dollar to keep it around for three more years at least. A chance to pair that defensive prowess with a young up-and-comer like Matt Nagy running the offense? It’s hard not to get excited.
There is however one other big reason the Bears wanted to keep Vic in town. Namely his players love him and some of those players are coming out of contract. One key name is now the most important pending free agent Chicago has going into this off-season.
Vic Fangio return drastically increases odds of keeping Kyle Fuller
Akiem Hicks may have been the best player on the Bears defense in 2017, but cornerback Kyle Fuller was nipping at his heels. The former 2014 first round pick looked like a bust coming into this season. His first two years were marred by inconsistency. Then he missed 2016 with a knee injury. People didn’t expect much from him this year.
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What they got was a Pro Bowl-worth season that saw him finish second on the team in tackles, intercept two passes and defend 22 others. It’s clear he’s coming into his own. Fangio deserves thanks for much of that. He also could be the one to help convince Fuller to return, which hasn’t looked like a sure thing at times. Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog indicated how tight the relationship has become.
“What I do know is the two developed a close relationship last off-season. There’s nobody closer to Fuller in the Bears organization than Fangio.”
This was confirmed back in December during an almost innocent comment by Fangio in a press conference. He admitted that he and Fuller had spent time together playing golf and perhaps other activities.
#Bears DC Vic Fangio joked about the one-on-one time he spent with CB Kyle Fuller in the offseason: "I know he didn't enjoy getting beat in golf."
— Zach Zaidman (@ZachZaidman) December 28, 2017
It’s clear Fuller grew closer to Fangio. Now the corner has experienced the best football of his life playing for him. Those two factors might compel him to stick around in Chicago. There’s little question the Bears will make a strong offer on a new contract. It comes down to whether Fuller tries to push the issue in order to be a top paid guy.
