The Chicago Bears had nothing to play for on Sunday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs and boy did it ever show. The Chiefs cruised out to a 17-0 lead at halftime and have been in total control from the opening bell. Defensively the Bears have tried everything to keep Patrick Mahomes and all that firepower in check but they’ve gotten zero help from the offense or special teams. In the end, nothing summed it up than a stat that emerged as the 2nd quarter expired. One that doesn’t paint the prettiest picture of head coach Matt Nagy.
This marks the 10th time in 2019 that the Bears offense failed to score a single point in the first half. The 10th. That is not a misprint. A Chicago offense under a head coach supposedly known for his offensive expertise failed to put a point on the board in the first half in two-thirds of the games his team has played in a season. That isn’t just bad. It has to be historic. The Bears have fielded really bad offenses before but this is worse.
For one it’s not because of a lack of talent. Three members of that depth chart made a Pro Bowl. Another in Allen Robinson probably should’ve. They have more than enough skill on this roster to put up points. So for them to be this inept and get off to so many painfully slow starts is an indictment of Nagy and his inability to get his team prepared for these games.
Matt Nagy may not be what some thought he was
There is no question Nagy is hamstrung in a lot of ways. He has no viable threat at tight end and his quarterback Mitch Trubisky continues to miss wide open receivers for big plays. That said his lack of feel for play calling is evident every week. Especially against well-coached defenses. The great irony here is that Nagy might be called the Trubisky of head coach picks by GM Ryan Pace. Why? He was young and oozing charisma with a ton of upside. However, he was also inexperienced.
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Nagy had just half a season of play calling under his belt in Kansas City when the Bears came calling. That red flag has loomed large this year as defenses have begun to sniff out his scheme. He just hasn’t been able to adjust to the players he has. Something his mentor Andy Reid and colleague Doug Pederson have proven so good at. Maybe a different quarterback might change things, but it’s hard to have that kind of confidence at this point.
