Listen it’s understandable to excuse Chicago Bears coach John Fox for his first two years. The guy inherited a team that was clearly rebuilding. However, as everybody knows the expectations rise in the third year. It’s by this time a roster should start to show signs of progress in the win column. In other words if people saw more of what happened last year, then it would be a big problem.
Well here the Bears are. They lose 29-0 in Tampa Bay, getting blown out for the second-straight season by a team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2008. Sure the Buccaneers are good, but they’re not mighty. Chicago just got done taking the NFC champion Falcons to the limit. This should not be happening. Well it is, and perhaps nothing sums up the Fox era in Chicago better than this stat courtesy of Dan Wiederer of Chicago Tribune.
In 8 September games under John Fox, the Bears are winless and have been outscored by 126 points.
— Dan Wiederer (@danwiederer) September 17, 2017
That number increased to nine games and slipped slightly to 122 points. The story of most seasons in the NFL are how they start. It’s really hard to have any success if you can’t start well. Fox has failed to keep his teams smart, disciplined or healthy. That’s a trifecta of failure.
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#Bears first half:
1. Glennon pick-6
2. Cohen brain cramp
3. 3 def. pens. on 3D stops
4. called TO on SECOND off. snap.
5. 44/76 injured— Mark Potash (@MarkPotash) September 17, 2017
Bears coach John Fox has a reputation for this
It’s been a subject for the past couple years. Was Fox a product of inheriting talented teams at the right time or is he that good of a coach? Those Panthers and Broncos squads he took over already had future superstars on them. Such was not the case with the Bears. They were the first literal rebuild from the ground up he’s faced. Their utter lack of progress is telling.
Their discipline is erratic at best. They make so many dumb mistakes and the persistent feature of the past three years has been constant injuries. Much of this is due to the fact that Fox is 62-years old. No one is saying he’s lacking energy. Multiple accounts of him off the field counter that argument. Then again his attention to detail has slipped considerably from year to year.
Here’s a stat for you. In 2015 the Bears had 99 team penalties. Not bad. Last year they had 110 penalties. Getting worse. Through two games of 2017, they have 16. That puts them on pace for 128 this year. That’s about as bad as it gets.
His greatest blunder was playing out the Glennon charade
If ever there was a moment in Fox’s tenure where he had a chance to change the script on his likely future it was at the end of August. Rookie quarterback Mitch Trubisky had clearly outplayed veteran Mike Glennon in the preseason. All signs pointed to him not only being ready, but just flat out better than. Instead Fox stuck to the original plan.
He insisted Glennon gave the team the best chance to win. Turns out not so much.
Glennon had Shaheen with an easy throw – then decided to throw to a triple covered TE? @BearsBarroom lost on this throw pic.twitter.com/i5PWVL7VMK
— Draft Dr. Phil (@FulphilO) September 17, 2017
Glennon now has four times as many turnovers as he has touchdown passes. So that whole thing about him protecting the football and managing the game? Guess we get to call Fox a liar. At least with Trubisky such mistakes are understandable. He’s a rookie who hasn’t seen NFL coverages. Glennon is 28 and was drafted in 2013.
If Fox thinks that man is better suited to lead the Bears offense, then he has lost touch with reality. It’s time for a change, not just at quarterback but at head coach as well.
