Matt Nagy certainly didn’t have plans for what has happened this 2020 offseason. He was hired to be the head coach of a football team. The Chicago Bears. He never could’ve imagined his life would get turned upside down in a matter of months. First by the COVID-19 pandemic and then shortly after by a string of protests breaking out following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers.

Considering how hot the topic was of police brutality against minorities, this was the match that lit the powder keg. Being in charge of a locker room filled with proud African-American men, Nagy had a decision to make. Ignore the outside noise or address it. He chose the latter, canceling a recent team meeting to allow players and coaches to air their thoughts in a two-hour Zoom session.

According to him during his latest video conference with Bears media, it was the “most powerful” two-hour session he’s ever been a part of and likely will ever be. No fewer than 139 people were logged into the call with at least 40 men taking to speak. Emotions apparently ran high at times discussing the killing and also their own experiences with racism.

Nagy said there were 139 people on Monday's call at 40-50 spoke.

— Larry Mayer (@LarryMayer) June 3, 2020

Matt Nagy says 40+ people talked in Monday’s team meeting: "There was a lot of anger, there was a lot of fear in the conversations. There was disgust, there was sadness, there was compassion, hurt… There was a vulnerability in people’s stories."

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) June 3, 2020

Matt Nagy says the Black players on the Bears were very interested in the opinions of the white players. Nagy says he felt a lot of love in the meeting on Monday. Nagy stressed "love". "The significance of love. That word does not get used enough, love."

— Mark Grote (@markgrotesports) June 3, 2020

Matt Nagy knows these discussions will benefit the Bears long-term

People can question Nagy as a play caller and offensive mind. It’s become clear though in the past two years and especially this offseason that the man is a leader. A great leader. Not many coaches would’ve been as decisive in reacting to real-world issues like this. They would’ve buried their heads in the sand and tried to focus on just football. The Bears head coach wasn’t going to take that exit strategy.

Per usual, he confronted the challenge head on.

This decision has earned a round of praise from the players, feeling it was healthy and necessary. Locker room stability is a big part of this team’s identity. Being able to address this issue now will certainly benefit the team down the road. Everybody should be a little bit closer with an understanding of where they stand. Never underestimate the value of something like that. Especially in team sports.