Matt Nagy was a surprise to many Chicago Bears fans. The majority had their hearts set on either Josh McDaniels or John DeFilippo as the rampant rumors suggested. In the end it was Nagy who took the checkered flag. This undoubtedly will scare some people. Of the three of them, he comes with the least NFL experience.
Nagy didn’t enter the league until 2008 as a coaching intern for the Philadelphia Eagles. Since then he’s been a direct protege of longtime coach Andy Reid, following him to Kansas City in 2013 and working his way up to the offensive coordinator position two years ago. He’s never coached under anybody else but Reid.
This leads to some question marks. Not so much about his ability to coach but more his ability to assemble a staff and lead men. However, upon further evaluation it becomes clear that Nagy earned this opportunity. Not only that but he couldn’t have gotten it anywhere else but Chicago. This team and city appears meant for him.
Matt Nagy shares common trait with Halas and Ditka: he’s a fighter
The two most successful coaches in Bears history were of course George Halas and Mike Ditka. In terms of personality the two were rather different, which may have been why they battled each other so often when Ditka played for Halas in the 1960s. However, therein lay the commonality that made the two such good coaches. They were fighters. No matter the obstacle they would battle until they won or were dead on the ground.
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Halas was the son of immigrants and served in the military in his youth. He got into football in its infancy and worked long days and nights to keep the sport afloat. Eventually he gained ownership of the Bears and used that drive to push the team towards its eventual greatness.
Ditka was born in the blue collar suburbs of Pittsburgh. He was raised in a strict household under an abusive father. He gained a scholarship to college and planned to become a dentist but failed. This caused him to push even harder towards a future in football. Eventually he had a Hall of Fame career as a tight end but many didn’t think he had a future as a head coach. One of those that did was Halas himself.
Why? Ditka wanted it, and it meant something to him.
Nagy understands the mindset of those men
If there’s one thing that Nagy knows about, it’s struggling against odds and doubters. Born in the north part of New Jersey, he understood coming up the hard way. In fact that lifestyle from high school through college and his pro career sticks with him to this day. It’s formed a massive chip on his shoulder.
“I wasn’t given the opportunity to play Division I football out of high school, and in my opinion, I felt I could. I wasn’t given an opportunity to play in the NFL out of college, and I felt I should have.”
Indeed Nagy had to fight for everything he’s gotten in football. Out of high school no big college would have him, so he went to Delaware. He finished his college career with a 23-8 record, 8,214 yards passing and 58 touchdowns. Despite having decent size and a reasonable arm, the NFL didn’t show much interest. At that point he could’ve called it a career, but Nagy wasn’t a quitter. He decided to try his hand in the Arena League.
His first three years were spent on different rosters, alternating between starter and backup. It wasn’t until 2005 with the Georgia Force that he got his first real opportunity. People might be shocked to know that it was a former Bears folk hero who gave it to him. The head coach of the Force at the time was none other than former Bears safety Doug Plank.
That’s right. The man who helped Buddy Ryan originate the fabled “46” defense had a hand in the early development of Nagy as a future coach. They spent two years together during which they reached an Arena Bowl. After a few more successful seasons though the league folded in 2009. By that point Nagy was already starting his transition to coaching as an intern in Philadelphia.
It seemed like fate that Nagy would coach Chicago
Imbued with a prove-you-wrong mentality and molded by a former Bears great, the stars seemed to align for Nagy in April of 2017. That was when GM Ryan Pace shocked the football world by trading up to the #2 pick to select Mitch Trubisky. It turns out that Nagy was a giant fan of the North Carolina quarterback. They apparently hit it off during the pre-draft process and Nagy was hoping the Chiefs would be able to trade up for him. Unfortunately Pace killed those dreams.
However, according to a source that didn’t stop him.
“They’ve already developed a relationship through the season and have kept in touch.”
Remember that Pace said Trubisky would have some input on this coaching hire shortly after John Fox was dismissed. Is it possible that Nagy got his decisive edge thanks to that prior connection? No doubt it likely played a role. Suddenly his football career has reached where he’s always wanted to go. He’s the head coach of the Chicago Bears, the founding franchise of the NFL.
Like Ditka, a lot of people aren’t going to be thrilled with the hire. If history indicates anything, Nagy will delight in finding ways to stuff those doubts down their throats.
