Rumors came out a week or two ago that the Chicago Bears may consider adding a little more experience to their defensive coaching staff. Somebody in the form of a senior assistant who can help new defensive coordinator Sean Desai makes the transition into his new job. One he’s never held before in his career. Finally, that move was indeed made.
Chicago will be bringing in Mike Pettine to join their staff. Most know him as the recently dismissed Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator. A job he’d held for three seasons, during which the Packers made the NFC championship game twice. His defense finished ninth overall this past season but fans were growing frustrated with his unit and the team finally decided to make a move, replacing him with Joe Barry.
Is their loss going to be the Bears’ gain? It sure looks like it.
The #Bears have hired former #Packers defensive coordinator Mike Pettine as their new senior defensive assistant, sources say. From Green Bay to Chicago, Pettine switches sides in the NFC North and will serve as a veteran sounding board for new DC Sean Desai.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 10, 2021
Pettine is a quality football coach. Of the 10 defenses he’s had a major hand in as a head coach or coordinator dating back to 2009, six of them ended up finishing in the top 10 in total yards allowed. Four of them finished in the top 10 in points allowed. So it’s safe to say he understands a thing or two about putting a quality defense on the field.
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Where he really excels is in the passing game. Pettine is a bit of a maestro when it comes to putting together a strong pass defense. Only one of his 10 defenses ranked worse than 14th in the league against the pass. Seven of them were in the top 10. Given the quarterback-centric league the NFL has become, this is never a bad thing.
Chicago Bears have additional reasons to hire him too
Putting aside his valuable experience, Pettine also brings something else. Knowledge of the inner workings of the Packers. He knows all of the personnel on that Green Bay defense. Their strengths and weaknesses. How it might be best to attack them. He also has a keen understanding of head coach Matt Lafleur’s offense and what it takes to slow both it and Aaron Rodgers down. Something the Bears have struggled to do.
There is no denying the veteran coach is a valuable commodity. Somebody who can offer Desai insight on what it’s like calling plays during games and understanding situations. When to blitz. When to drop in coverage. All of those things. He’s done it for years. Nobody else on the Chicago Bears staff can make such a claim. So it isn’t hard to see why Matt Nagy made this move. It’s a smart one.
The 2021 season could end up being a fun one.
Expectations are the Bears will return to a schematic approach they had under Vic Fangio. They moved away from it during Chuck Pagano’s two-year run. Desai obviously worked with Fangio from 2015 to 2018 and reportedly has similar philosophies. If that weren’t enough, Pettine also worked with the former Bears coordinator in Baltimore. So he has familiarity with it as well. All the more reason to like the hire.
