The Chicago Bears are just a few weeks away from opening training camp to prepare for their 2022 season. Although expectations are low for the rebuilding Bears with first-year head coach Matt Eberflus, there is anticipation for second-year quarterback Justin Fields and new offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. Chicago’s offense will have a chance to be significantly improved at the start of the season simply because former head coach Matt Nagy is no longer in charge of the offense.

still can’t believe Matt Nagy wasn’t thrown in prison at halftime for his game plan in Justin Fields’ first start pic.twitter.com/6uhSM48eHx

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) June 7, 2022

Nagy’s Offensive Play-Calling Has Hindered The Growth Of The Bears’ Offensive Talent

When former general manager Ryan Pace hired Nagy in January of 2018, the Bears believed they had a future offensive innovator as their new head coach was viewed with the same potential as Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan. The former Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterbacks coach had potential as he proved himself to be a promising play-caller following a brief stint as offensive coordinator for Kanas City towards the end of the 2017 season.

Nagy was expected to develop quarterback Mitchell Trubisky in a similar manner that he developed Chiefs’ quarterback Alex Smith into a perennial Pro Bowl talent. The Bears’ offensive-minded coach had a terrific first season with Chicago in 2018 as the team won the NFC North Division, made the playoffs, and had Trubisky named to the Pro Bowl.

Unfortunately, it was all downhill for Nagy and the Bears’ offense following the 2019 season. Trubisky regressed as he had fewer passing touchdowns and passing yards while having a lower quarterback rating and completion percentage than in 2018. Chicago only won eight games as their pass offense ranked 25th and the rushing offense ranked 27th.

1. Matt Nagy is 3-7 this season

He's 0-4 out of the bye week
He's 1-6 against the Packers
His team has averaged 19.4 ppg since 2019
Justin Fields has been sacked 32 times

This is coaching malpractice. #Bears

— Erik Lambert (@ErikLambert1) November 21, 2021

In the offseason following the 2019 season, Chicago traded for former Pro Bowl quarterback Nick Foles as he was more familiar with Nagy’s Run-Pass Option offense. Although Trubisky was Chicago’s starting quarterback to begin the 2020 season, he was benched midway through the team’s Week 3 game against the Atlanta Falcons in favor of Foles. Despite Foles having familiarity with Nagy’s offense, the Bears offense struggled in the quarterback’s seven starts, including a 2-5 record and only scoring four touchdowns during a four-game span.

Following a Week 11 loss to the Minnesota Vikings at home, Nagy was stripped of his play-calling duties in favor of offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, while Trubisky returned as the team’s starting quarterback. The offense instantly improved as Chicago averaged nearly 30 points per game in their final six games of the season, which helped to clinch a playoff spot.

Let's give credit where credit is due. Mitchell Trubisky looks WAY better with Bill Lazor calling plays than he did with Matt Nagy.

Lazor is able to play to Mitch's strengths, and Mitch has looked a lot more confident under center because of it. Kudos to the two of them.

— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) December 20, 2020

Last season, Nagy continued to have issues as the overseer of the Bears’ offense as both Fields and Andy Dalton struggled significantly at times during the season. Both quarterbacks recorded three-interception games, while neither had three touchdown games. Chicago offense in 2021 had eight games in which they scored 17 points or less. Nagy again had to give up play-calling duties after a Week 3 loss to Cleveland in which Fields was sacked nine times.

The 2021 season confirmed that Nagy was not a good play-caller as he had several proven players on offense that all seemed to have poor seasons. Wide receiver Allen Robinson only had 38 receptions in 11 games, despite leading the team in receptions the prior two seasons. Running back David Montgomery had a reduction in rushing yards, despite only playing in two fewer games than the year before. Despite having the talent on offense, Nagy could not put his players in a position to perform due to the scheme.

Throughout 12 quarters the Chicago Bears offense under Matt Nagy scored only 2 touchdowns.

Bill Lazor scored 3 touchdowns in his first 3 quarters with Justin Fields. pic.twitter.com/fI1UViEPHp

— Max Markham (@MaxMarkhamNFL) October 3, 2021

Luke Getsy Has A Chance To Be The Opposite Of Nagy

One of Nagy’s most significant weaknesses as an offensive coach was his stubbornness in making neccesary changes and designing plays to highlight his quarterback’s strengths. For instance, Trubisky has proven to be a better quarterback with boot-leg play-action passing plays as he had success with the offensive style with both Dowell Loggains and Lazor, but Chicago’s former head coach refused to implement the passing-plays.

Last season, Fields struggled significantly to execute Nagy’s offense, with no effort made by the head coach to highlight the rookie quarterback’s strengths. There were too many instances in 2021 where Chicago’s young quarterback looked confused when in the pocket and was more effective when on the move. Fields’ struggles were highlighted by his ten interceptions and only having two games of 250 passing yards or more in his ten starts.

Getsy’s number one goal this offseason has been to implement an offense that can highlights Fields’ strengths, including the quarterback’s deep ball accuracy and ability to scramble. The Bears’ new offensive coordinator will utilize an offensive scheme similar to Shanahan’s offense in San Francisco which relies on boot-leg and play-action passing-play designs and is heavy on pre-snap motions. The goal is to shorten Fields’ reads when passing while getting the ball out faster and giving him the option to run. The offense will limit the chances of the quarterback being sacked, while also creating difficult coverage assignments for the opposing defense with the pre-snap motions.

Bears fans – “I want a Shanahan type offense!”

Also Bears fans – “I wants to pass 600 times like the Matt Nagy era!”

The two are polar opposites. Listen to Luke Getsy in his own words. pic.twitter.com/zCYhyHEb7z

— illwill (@79illwill) May 12, 2022

The Bears’ offense will be better as players like Darnell Mooney, Cole Kmet, Byron Pringle, and Montgomery will have a chance to be more successful. The running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends in the 49ers’ offense have all had career years in recent years due to the effectiveness of Shanahan’s play design. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel and tight end George Kittle have been named All-Pros in the last three seasons with San Francisco.

Getsy’s offense will be the polar opposite of Nagy’s as Chicago’s quarterback will be on the move instead of throwing from the pocket, while wide receivers will be used more on motion routes instead of stationary routes. Chicago’s head coach for the last four season struggled significantly to design productive offensive game-plans and develop consistent play from his quarterbacks. Heading into the 2022 season, Getsy appears poised to do the opposite, making the Bears’ offense instantly better than years past.