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New York Giants head coach Pat Shurmur is 13 years the senior of Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy, which equates to a wealth of knowledge and experience in the football world.
That’s something Nagy had in mind when he and Shurmur briefly crossed paths in Philadelphia, where Shurmur had multiple stints at various different positions and Nagy entered the league as an intern.
And while the two only had what amounts to a cup of coffee in the same room, Nagy recalls that Shurmur never had a big head and would always make time for anyone that had questions, which resulted in a respect that remains just as strong today as it was then.
“I was only there with him for probably three to four weeks, but in that time, I was with the quarterbacks and he was running the quarterback room with Donovan McNabb at the time. It was great for me as a young, up-and-coming coach, just to see how somebody runs a quarterback room, and how they watch tape, and how they study coverages, and how they handle relationships with these players,” Nagy said during a conference call on Wednesday. “I’ll always remember that.
“Probably my greatest story with him, and I said this last year when we played you all, is just the appreciation when I was out of football. I used to try to stay in touch and in contact with the people that you connect with— and he was one. I put a phone call and a text message in to him and he got right back to me. I just always remembered that, thinking, you know, that’s a high character guy who doesn’t think he’s too big for anybody.”
After Nagy got back into the league, he excelled with the Kansas City Chiefs, ultimately earning him a head coaching job in Chicago. He then went on to do something Shurmur has never done, winning AP Coach of the Year in 2018.
Unfortunately for Nagy, that success has not followed him into the 2019 season, where his Bears are under-performing similarly to Shurmur’s Giants.
“Every year is different. You have to prep for that and you’ve got to understand that’s the way it goes. That’s the beauty of coaching, is how you respond to adversity,” Nagy said. “When you build a strong culture like we have in our building, when these types of things come your way, you rely on people’s character. We went on that stretch where we lost four games in a row, we got a win and broke it, then we got another loss last week. We’ve got good guys and guys that give good effort, so it definitely helps out.”
Nagy’s seat in Chicago isn’t nearly as hot as Shurmur’s in New York, but both head coaches desperately need a win this Sunday respect for each other be damned.
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