All that matters is the Chicago Bears managed to sign wide receiver Allen Robinson. He represented everything they needed at the position. Not just the talent but the way he plays from a route running perspective. It was a good fit from all angles. Nonetheless, a curious question lingers on. While he may have been #1 on the Bears’ list of priorities when the market opened, was the feeling mutual?
One can understand if Robinson wished to join another team. One with a more established quarterback and more recent reputation for winning. It’s only natural for a wide receiver who hasn’t really experienced either to want that. Were the Bears merely a fallback option? Did they just happen to offer the right money deal he wanted?
It turns out the decision had nothing to do with money. There was a more practical element to his reasoning, one that Anthony Adams found out when he went for a drive with Robinson on his show “Big Guys in a Benz.”
Allen Robinson wanted the Bears because he likes Matt Nagy
This is a reminder of how important a head coaching hire can be. The guy simply being a good coach on the field is one thing. Yet a vital part of the job is whether he can entice players from other teams to come to join him. Matt Nagy demonstrated that sort of pull from the moment he took over in Chicago, and Robinson admits it here.
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He didn’t necessarily want to play with a great quarterback or on a winning team. He wanted to go someplace that wanted him but more importantly featured a system that fit his skill set. The Bears offered all of that. They desperately needed at #1 wide receiver and Nagy’s schemes are tailormade for what Robinson does best.
Nagy is a coach who loves to utilize the big play, taking strikes down the field. Robinson has 53 plays of 25 yards or more since 2015, good for ninth in the NFL. Kansas City, where Nagy was offensive coordinator last year, finished second in yards per pass attempt at 7.6. He is an aggressive coach. After years of being stuck in the conservative situation of Jacksonville, it’s little wonder Robinson was on board so fast.
