The Chicago Bears find themselves in a position nobody thought was possible a month ago. After dropping their sixth-straight game to the Detroit Lions, they were 5-7. The season was over. People were witnessing arguably the greatest collapse in franchise history. Then stuff started to get weird. A blowout of the Houston Texans led to a surge that saw the Bears win three in a row. Head coach Matt Nagy had somehow managed to rally his troops. Now the Bears are 8-7 with a chance to make the playoffs if they win on Sunday.
Easily the biggest story throughout this improbable turnaround is Mitch Trubisky. Left for dead back in September after being benched, the 26-year old quarterback has found new life. In his past five starts since returning, he’s 3-2 with 11 total touchdowns and four interceptions. One of the best overall stretches of his career. While he’s had some help in the form of a soft stretch of defenses, the uptick in efficiency can’t be ignored.
So where does the credit go for this?
Most of it is centered on Trubisky himself. Coaches and teammates have all said the quarterback returned to the starting lineup a different person. He carried himself differently. He was less about pleasing everybody and more about doing what was necessary to win. That meant pushing for changes on offense that better fit his strengths.
Also getting credit is offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. He was thrust to the forefront when Nagy gave up play calling duties back in November. His ability to adjust the scheme on the fly and completely revitalize Trubisky and the running game deserves a ton of credit. Yet there was one other tweak to the formula Nagy implemented that went unnoticed. Adam Jahns of The Athletic revealed what it was in his recent column.
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“Trubisky’s connection with quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo hasn’t been highlighted enough over the past few weeks. More attention has been given to Matt Nagy and his decision to hand over play calling to offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. But it’s DeFilippo who is now on the sideline to talk Trubisky through all the good, bad and ugly (his latest interception) in person. When Nagy called plays, Lazor ran the sideline while DeFilippo was in the booth.”
Matt Nagy finally putting DeFilippo in Trubisky’s ear was key
DeFilippo has a long-standing reputation as one of the best quarterback coaches in the NFL. He helped a rookie Mark Sanchez lead the New York Jets to the AFC championship in 2009. He started Derek Carr off strong in Oakland in 2014 and then he helped mold Carson Wentz into an MVP candidate in 2017. This before he assisted Nick Foles in leading the Philadelphia Eagles to the Super Bowl that same year.
Kirk Cousins? Gardner Minshew? All experienced top career success with him on the sideline. So it’s interesting to hear the Bears kept him in the booth during the season. It’s apparent that putting him back on the sideline where he could constantly be in Trubisky’s ear is having an effect. Enough to where the young QB may yet prolong his career in a Bears uniform beyond 2020.
Something nobody thought was possible a month ago.
Matt Nagy gets a lot of flak for his shortcomings. Yet he deserves credit. A lot of head coaches wouldn’t be willing to make sweeping changes in the middle of a season. Giving up play calling and shuffling his staff on the fly? That took a lot of guts. To this point he’s pressed all the right buttons, putting his team in a position to salvage the season. Maybe even the career of his quarterback too.
