The season has moved so quickly this year that’s it is easy for Chicago Bears fans to forget how new Matt Nagy is to all this. Sure the whole head coach thing is applicable, but in this case, we’re talking about play calling. Here’s some perspective. Since 11:59 a.m. on December 3rd of last year, Nagy had never called an offensive game at any level in his football career.
So he’s only been doing this for barely 13 months. That is not a lot of experience compared to most of the head coaches who are considered top play callers these days. Sean McVay had multiple years of experience when he took over in Los Angeles. The same was true of Sean Payton in New Orleans and Bill O’Brien in Houston.
In that regard, Nagy was a bit of risk by the Bears. So all things considered, has he looked like that unseasoned type his background indicated? Not according to Dan Orlovsky. The former quarterback and current analyst has tracked the coach’s progress all season and he was floored by how far he’s come based on the latest tape from San Francisco.
🚨🚨ALL OF YOU @ChicagoBears fans-Your coach is A WEAPON. This is called in game adjusting. This is called being aggressive. This is called having feel and seeing the game differently. WOW👀👀👀👏👏 #Bears fans RT THIS! @thekapman @kfishbain @SarahSpain #NFLGamepass pic.twitter.com/aj8HTqxa4B
— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) December 26, 2018
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Matt Nagy was always sharp but his growing experience makes him dangerous
Here’s the thing. Good play callers in football tend to just have that knack. Rarely do they start out bad and suddenly become good. It takes a certain flair for the job. Nagy seemed to have it from the moment he started last year, jumpstarting a Chiefs offense that had stalled midway through the season. However, as with any job a man only becomes better at it as he gains experience.
This seems to be the case for Nagy. It may not seem like it based on the number of points they’ve scored but over the past two months, the offensive execution in key situations has significantly improved. Despite facing a string of a talented and/or well-coached defenses, Nagy has consistently managed to call scoring drives right when his team needs them. It’s a big reason the Bears have won eight of their last nine games.
Even in the lone loss to the Giants, he put on a master class to help tie the game and force overtime despite not having his starting quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Odds are this offense is only going to get better as his comfort level with the system and the players continue to grow.
