A Total Coward Move Fittingly Ends The Matt Nagy And Ryan Pace Era
There will be many reasons given as to why Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace likely find themselves unemployed next month. For Nagy, it was his constant failures to produce a professional offense. His mishandling of Justin Fields’ development and overall poor management of what was a good football team. For Pace, it was his series of high-profile misses in the draft coupled with two misses at head coach in Nagy and John Fox.
Yet the true reality of this centers around the rivalry with the Green Bay Packers. If there is anything that sums up those two men, it is how futile they’ve been whenever faced with the Bears’ greatest nemesis. Following the defeat on Sunday night at Lambeau Field, Pace fell to 2-12 lifetime against the Packers while Nagy is 1-7. People can blame the Aaron Rodgers presence all they want. In reality, those two men deserve blame for not fielding a good enough team.
The Packers game summed it up perfectly.
Everything went the Bears’ way in the first half. The offense scored 20 points. Jakeem Grant added a punt return touchdown. They had the lead and some momentum going into the second half. Then, as always, Green Bay made some adjustments. They scored 18 points in the 3rd quarter while the Bears failed to even register a first down. Then for good measure? Down 11 early the 4th quarter and facing 4th and inches, Nagy decided to punt.
If there was any moment that signaled surrender? That was it. It’s fitting that the Packers followed that with a drive that covered most of the 4th quarter to put the game away with a touchdown pass to Davante Adams. He put zero trust in his offense and instead tried to lean on an old and banged-up defense one last time. A poetic statement about his entire run in Chicago. Then for good measure? He kicked a field goal down 45-27 with under two minutes left. Incredible.
Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace have no legs to stand on
The head coach’s performance this year was by far the worst of his career. Pace? His mismanagement of the salary cap coupled with several of his more recent draft picks struggling. Cole Kmet can’t hang onto the football. Teven Jenkins had four penalties in his first appearance. Fields? He has shown plenty of flashes but has also struggled. There isn’t enough evidence to suggest Pace deserves to keep his job. Not with one winning record in seven seasons.
George McCaskey was present at the game. He saw the state of things. There isn’t anything else to evaluate. Those two men are ill-equipped to get this team where it wants to go. Matt Nagy can’t remain in charge of Fields’ development. Pace can’t be relied on to find him proper weapons and protection. This team desperately needs a reboot to their power structure.
Will McCaskey oblige?
Most signs point to yes. It is a matter of when. People are calling for a move to be made immediately. There is little point in either man staying employed now that the playoffs are out of the question. Send a message. Make it clear this sort of thing won’t be tolerated anymore. It would easily be the most pleasant surprise of an otherwise brutal season.