Does Matt Nagy regret how he handled Bears QB Justin Fields?

Matt Nagy: “We knew (Justin Fields) was our future, and we wanted to…do everything we possibly could to make sure he succeeded.”

Former Bears coach Matt Nagy isn’t remembered fondly in Chicago. But he did play a part in drafting quarterback Justin Fields, which has to have fans feeling at least a little appreciative.

Nagy, now the Chiefs quarterbacks coach, finds himself coaching in the Super Bowl one year removed from what was an ugly final season with the Bears.

Excitement was at an all-time high with the drafting of Fields, but Nagy’s handling of the rookie quarterback rubbed fans and analysts the wrong way.

Whether it was Fields not getting a chance to compete for the starting job with veteran Andy Dalton, questionable game plans or failing to adapt his offense to fit Fields strengths, it became a matter of when — not if — Nagy would be fired. Nagy made it to the end of the 2021 season before he was canned, along with general manager Ryan Pace.

Nagy was asked about whether he had any regrets with how he handled Fields last year.

“Everyone said, ‘You’re trying to do the Alex Smith-Patrick Mahomes deal.’ They’re all different,” Nagy told CHGO Sports. “We wanted to make sure we handled Justin — we knew that was our future, and we wanted to handle him and do everything we possibly could to make sure he succeeded — scheme, how we handled practices.”

Nagy admitted it “didn’t go the way we wanted” but he used it as a learning experience.

But with Nagy coaching for his job last season, did he feel a sense of pressure to develop Fields in a short span?

“These guys are so young,” Nagy said. “When they’re thrown into it, everybody thinks it can just happen overnight; they’re going to play like they did in college. That’s not real. When you’re a coach and you go through your offense, your scheme, your players, you want to do everything you possibly can to make sure they succeed.”

Fields’ career got off to an ominous start with his first start against the Browns, where he was sacked nine times (including four times by Myles Garrett). It was a disaster from start to finish, and it’s something Nagy regrets.

“It wasn’t what we wanted for Justin,” Nagy said. “…The last thing you want is to hurt somebody’s confidence, a young quarterback, like we did that game. No one wants that for anybody.”

Flash forward a year, and Fields is coming off a sophomore season where he emerged as one of the NFL’s most electrifying players, despite shortcomings on the roster.

While it was another ugly season — with Fields being sacked 55 times and leading the worst passing offense — it’s hard not to be excited about the future after what Fields showed in Year 2.

It’s safe to say Nagy won’t be receiving a warm reception in Chicago anytime soon. But, if anything, thanks for Fields.

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Nick Saban calls 2021 season a ‘rebuilding year’

Nick Saban calls the 2021 season a rebuilding year!

Most coaches would consider an SEC Championship, a national title appearance and a Heisman Trophy wining quarterback a once-in-a-lifetime season. Alabama head coach [autotag]Nick Saban[/autotag] calls it a rebuilding year.

The Tide had a lot of replacing to do after losing Mac Jones, Najee Harris, DeVonta Smith, Patrick Surtain II, Christian Barmore and others to the 2021 NFL draft. The program had to lean heavily on some inexperienced players.

Bryce Young won the Heisman Trophy despite having zero career starts heading into 2021. Will Anderson Jr. led the country in tackles for loss and sacks after hardly seeing the field as a freshman.

The Tide didn’t lose a ton to the NFL Draft in 2022, and the team will be incredibly experienced heading into the season. The Tide stashed up on talent in the transfer portal and may have one of their best teams yet.

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How much was Bears QB Justin Fields affected by pressure in 2021?

Considering the circumstances of Justin Fields’ rookie season, it’s not a shock that the Bears QB was affected by pressure in 2021.

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Bears quarterback Justin Fields’ rookie season was rocky to say the least. To the point that head coach Matt Nagy and general manager Ryan Pace were relieved of their duties and a new regime ushered in.

Pro Football Focus examined how different quarterbacks were affected by pressure, based on the difference in their PFF grades from a clean pocket and pressured pocket.

Fields was among those quarterbacks that were affected most when pressured. He had a clean-pocket passing grade of 78.4 and a pressured-pocket passing grade of 33.1 for a difference of 45.3.

That ranked fourth most behind only San Francisco’s Jimmy Garoppolo (1st), Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa (2nd) and Houston’s Davis Mills (3rd).

The Buckeye-turned-Bear signal-caller registered only 353 total dropbacks — the second-fewest of the group — and only 87 of his attempts were pressured. He completed 40 of them with only two touchdowns. Fields tied for the fifth-most turnover-worthy plays (11) and was sacked 36 times on such plays.

Considering the circumstances that Fields was dealing with — questionable offensive line and and even worse play caller in Nagy — it’s not a surprise. Fields was sacked nine times in his first start against the Cleveland Browns, and it’s hard to imagine that wasn’t in the back of his mind for the duration of his rookie season.

Looking ahead of the 2022 season, things aren’t much better. There are still questions along the offensive line, as the Bears don’t have their starting combination in place heading into training camp. Not to mention, outside of Darnell Mooney, Fields doesn’t have any proven commodities at wide receiver.

But the good news is that Fields finally has an adequate play caller in new offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, who’s already promised to build the offense around Fields’ strengths.

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Bears’ Darnell Mooney details locker room vibe during ‘brutal’ 2021 season

Darnell Mooney described the Bears locker room vibe last season when the team was continuously losing, and it was as bad as you’d expect.

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During the final year of Matt Nagy’s tenure with the Chicago Bears, it became apparent that he wouldn’t be Chicago’s head coach beyond 2021. But there were questions if a move would come mid-season, especially given there were some difficult outings during the 6-11 season.

Bears wide receiver Darnell Mooney described the locker room vibe last season when the team was continuously losing, and it was just as bad as you’d expect.

“You could definitely feel the energy a lot of guys just having that time like, ‘Let’s just get this over with. It’s getting brutal out here, just continuing losing,'” Mooney told Red Line Radio. “It’s definitely hard to have the mindset going into next week, ‘My god, we just keep losing.'”

At one point, the Bears had two losing streaks of five and three games, including some rough outings against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Ravens, where Chicago lost to backup quarterback Tyler Huntley.

Mooney was also asked about the infamous Cleveland Browns game in Week 3, where Justin Fields was sacked nine times in one of the Bears’ worst offensive performances in franchise history.

“I’ve never been a part of that situation ever,” Mooney said, acknowledging that it was a rough contest.

That game set the tone for what would be a brutal 2021 season, where both Nagy and general manager Ryan Pace were fired following the regular-season finale.

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Cowboys land both starting cornerbacks on PFF’s top 10 list for press coverage

Trevon Diggs was ranked No. 1 in press coverage last season; Anthony Brown took enough advantage of his environment to finish 9th. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Everything’s bigger in Texas, they say. But when the Dallas Cowboys defense is on the field, their starting cornerbacks are both among the best in the league at making things exponentially smaller for opposing quarterbacks. Like throwing windows and completion rates.

Pro Football Focus has released its list of the top 10 press cornerbacks, and Trevon Diggs and Anthony Brown both make an appearance, speaking well of the vast improvements made to the defense overall last season in Dan Quinn’s first year as coordinator.

But press coverage is about the player more than the scheme. And PFF’s Conor McQuiston caveats his countdown by admitting that ranking press cover men is especially tricky business.

But so is throwing against the Cowboys corners, based on the statistics utilized. It’s not just targets and pass breakups and yards; but target percentage, yards per route run allowed, and percentage of targets charted as “open,” among others-  and the weights given for each stat that make up a composite score for each player.

Dallas isn’t the only team with two representatives on this list. The New Orleans Saints duo of Marshon Lattimore and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson came in at Nos. 4 and 5, respectively.

The rankings represent 2021 performance and are not necessarily meant to be forward-looking projections.

Cowboys trio lands in Top 25 for latest merchandise sales

The Cowboys were the only team to land five players in the Top 50 for player-branded sales for the period before 2021 training camp. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The latest sales figures have been released for NFL player-specific merchandise.

The Cowboys are, once again, America’s Team.

Cha-ching.

The rankings from the NFLPA are for the period of March 1, 2021 to May 31, 2021, so the list is somewhat behind the very latest trends and doesn’t even include the last season of play. Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons, for example, had yet to begin his remarkable rookie campaign; he falls outside the Top 25 as a result.

At No. 6, quarterback Dak Prescott is the highest-ranking Cowboys player on the list, which includes all player-branded merchandise sold online and in brick-and-mortar retail outlets. Fans were clearly eager to rep Prescott’s gear as he made his way back from the injury that prematurely ended his 2020 season.

CeeDee Lamb places 13th; the wide receiver was preparing to start just his second season in the league for the period that sales were tabulated.

Running back Ezekiel Elliott is 16th. His inclusion here gives the Cowboys three players inside the Top 20. No other team can make that claim.

The aforementioned Parsons sits at No. 28, the fourth-highest-ranking defensive player. Again, this was before his transcendent Defensive Rookie of the Year season had even begun. He no doubt moved much higher as the 2021 season played out.

Amari Cooper- while he was still in the silver and blue, anyway- comes in 47th.

Tampa Bay’s Tom Brady led all player-specific merchandise sales for the prescribed period; Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, Buffalo’s Josh Allen, Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow, and New England’s Mac Jones round out the top five.

George Kittle, one spot below Prescott, is the highest-ranking non-quarterback in the Top 50.

The Cowboys outpaced all NFL teams with five players on the Top 50. San Francisco landed four players on the list; the Buccaneers, Steelers, and Rams all featured three players.

Twenty-eight of the league’s 32 teams have a player somewhere in the Top 50.

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Bears name Robert Quinn, Khalil Herbert recipients of Brian Piccolo Award

Every year, the Bears select a veteran and a rookie to honor with the Brian Piccolo Award. This year, it’s Robert Quinn and Khalil Herbert.

Courage. Loyalty. Teamwork. Dedication. A sense of humor. Those are just a few traits that described the late Brian Piccolo.

Every year, the Chicago Bears select a veteran and a rookie that best exemplify those traits to honor the former Bears running back with the Brian Piccolo Award. This year’s recipients are pass rusher Robert Quinn and rookie running back Khalil Herbert.

Quinn is coming off his best season with the Bears, where he set a franchise single-season record with 18.5 sacks. He tallied 12 sacks in the final eight games, recording at least a half sack in 14 of 16 games. Quinn was voted to the Pro Bowl and named second-team All-Pro.

“It’s definitely an honor to be nominated for this,” Quinn said, via ChicagoBears.com, “so thank you to the McCaskey and Piccolo families and my teammates for voting for me.”

Herbert, a sixth-round rookie, impressed during his short stint in a starting role in place of an injured David Montgomery. From Weeks 5-8, Herbert rushed for 344 yards, never rushing for less than 72 yards during that span. He also proved his effectiveness as a kickoff returner.

“I’m honored to receive this award,” Herbert said. “I just want to say thank you to the McCaskey family, the Piccolo family and the Bears organization for allowing me to be a part of this rich tradition. Embodying loyalty, teamwork and dedication is something I always strive for on and off the field, so I’m honored to receive this award.

“I also want to thank my teammates for voting for me to be the rookie that receives this award. I will continue embodying these characteristics on and off the field and hope to make everybody proud in this room and my family back home.”

Piccolo is most known for his relationship with former Bears Hall of Fame running back Gale Sayers, and their friendship was the spotlight of the film Brian’s Song, which has left a profound impact on many who have watched it.

Piccolo passed away after embryonal cell carcinoma, an aggressive form of germ cell testicular cancer, had spread to his chest cavity. He was 26 years old. Still, Piccolo’s memory lives on through the stories told and an annual award that honors those traits that defined his character.

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Bears’ Justin Fields was ‘really pissed’ about game plan for first start vs. Browns

Justin Fields’ first NFL start was an utter disaster. So it’s no surprise that Fields was upset about that game plan.

There’s a lot of excitement surrounding the future of Bears quarterback Justin Fields. But it was far from a smooth rookie season, which started on an ominous note in his first start against the Browns in Week 3.

Fields, who never got the opportunity to compete for the starting job, was thrust into a starting role after Andy Dalton was sidelined with a knee injury. The expectation was that Matt Nagy and his co

As Bears fans remember well, Fields was sacked nine times and Chicago was limited to just 47 yards of offense in a brutal 26-6 loss to the Browns. Nagy came under fire, and rightfully so, for a horrible game plan that failed to put Fields in a position to succeed. It marked the beginning of the end of Nagy’s tenure with the Bears.

Fields’ quarterbacks coach Ron Veal appeared on 670 the Score, where he shed some light on Fields’ first start. And, to know one’s surprise, Fields wasn’t happy with the game plan.

“I know he was a little pissed about it,” he said. “But I didn’t get an explanation, and I really didn’t ask because I know he was in a situation where he was really pissed off about it.”

Fields has a clean slate heading into Year 2, where he’ll be learning a new offense under Luke Getsy. The encouraging news is that Getsy plans to build the offense around Fields, which is sensible and something Nagy failed to do last season.

But there are concerns about how the roster is forming around him, where there are still holes at wide receiver and offensive line. Still, a better coaching staff and scheme should work wonders.

This offseason, Fields has been hard at work training with the likes of wide receiver Darnell Mooney and tight end Cole Kmet. He’s also worked with Veal on anticipation and a quicker release.

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Bears’ Trevis Gipson was among PFF’s top edge rushers in 2021

Trevis Gipson stepped up for the Bears last season, where he graded among PFF’s top edge rushers.

With the departure of Khalil Mack this offseason, the Chicago Bears have a big hole to fill at edge rusher opposite Robert Quinn. But it looks like Trevis Gipson is ready to step up into that permanent starting role.

Gipson didn’t have a prominent starting role — which makes sense given it was Mack and Quinn anchoring the edge — but he stepped up in Mack’s absence when he suffered a season-ending foot injury in Week 7.

In 2021, Gipson totaled 39 tackles, including seven tackles-for-loss, seven sacks, seven QB hits, two pass breakups, five forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in 16 games, including nine starts. For a second-year player thrust into a starting role, he stepped up and produced.

Gipson’s 87.0 pass rush grade ranked 10th among all edge rushers in 2021, according to Pro Football Focus. Which is pretty impressive for the former fifth-round pick entering his third season.

While Gipson has established himself as a playmaker off the edge, he still needs to get better in run defense and pass coverage. He notched a 50.8 grade against the run and 47.0 in pass coverage, per PFF.

Gipson will have to earn the starting job over newcomer Al-Quadin Muhammad, who’s followed new head coach Matt Eberflus from the Indianapolis Colts.

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McCarthy cites fixing Cowboys penalties as main focus for 2022, but bad luck contributed in ’21

The Cowboys coach doesn’t want to lead the NFL again in penalties, but the record shows they were cursed by flag-happy refs often in 2021. | From @ToddBrock24f7

There’s plenty to fix in Dallas, to be sure. As with any team that’s sent home from the postseason earlier than anticipated, the list of things that the Cowboys hope to improve for 2022 is considerable. But when head coach Mike McCarthy starts ordering that list in terms of priority, there’s room for just one item to be the top concern.

Penalties were the first area of focus mentioned by McCarthy as he spoke to the media Tuesday at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. The Cowboys led the league last year (playoffs included) in flags thrown on them (168) and penalties actually assessed against them (141).

Those numbers speak to a lot of sloppy technique, mental errors, and discipline issues. McCarthy may not be the one called out by number when the referee keys his mic on Sundays, but make no mistake: penalties are a coaching problem.

But in the Cowboys’ case, it turns out bad luck played a significant role, too.

For starters, McCarthy acknowledges that while giving up 1,192 penalty yards over 18 games- an average of 66.22 yards per outing- must be corrected, he doesn’t feel the need for a wholesale change in philosophy, just the time spent on playing clean football.

“I believe in the format that we use, how we emphasize it, how we teach it,” the coach said. “Penalty prevention, the individual focus and the techniques part of it… that will be heightened.”

The challenge is that, thanks to CBA rules that determine a fixed amount of instructional time, hours spent dedicated to penalty prevention takes away from time spent practicing some other aspect of the game.

“I’m not making [an] excuse; your time with your team is less than it’s ever been in, I know, my time as a head coach. So where are you going to spend that time?” McCarthy asked rhetorically. “We will talk and emphasize penalties more than we have in the past.”

Of course, there is also a risk in overcoaching penalties, in fine-tuning players’ techniques so much that power, strength, and aggression start to suffer for the sake of not wanting to draw a flag.

McCarthy certainly doesn’t want that, either.

“Sometimes there’s a risk of being higher penalties when you want to be more combative, get your play style consistent for your whole team. I think that’s a process where [when] we’ve come out of year one and into year two was an emphasis for us because of our play style wasn’t consistently at the fever pitch that we wanted it throughout our team. And with that comes more combative penalties. History will tell you that; that’s been my experience as a head coach. Those are some things that are accepted part of doing business,” McCarthy explained, “but the pre-snap and the discipline penalties we have to be much better at. We did not, by no means, did we hit the target there. I’ve got to coach it better, we’ve got to emphasize it better. It will definitely be a heightened point.”

But as Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News pointed out this week, some of the Cowboys’ penalty woes in 2021 can be attributed to luck of the draw. Bad luck, that is.

Officiating crews led by Shawn Hochuli, Scott Novak, and Alex Kemp all finished within the top three in the NFL last season for flags thrown per game.

Hochuli called two Cowboys games in 2021: the season-opening loss where he flagged Dallas eight times (to Tampa Bay’s 11) and the Thanksgiving laundryfest where he dinged Dallas and Las Vegas 14 times apiece, another Cowboys loss.

Novak worked two Cowboys games as well: Week 8’s win (11 Cowboys penalties to Minnesota’s seven) and Week 17’s loss (10 Cowboys flags to Arizona’s seven).

Kemp handled Week 14’s win, where Dallas and Washington were both hit with seven infractions. But he also helmed the mixed officiating crew for the Cowboys’ wild-card loss, flagging Dallas 14 times to San Francisco’s nine.

That’s one-third of the team’s 18 games with a notoriously flag-happy ref running the show, six games producing nearly one-half of the Cowboys’ assessed penalty calls for the entire year.

Compare that to Bill Vinovich. His crew called the fewest penalties in the league for the fourth time in five years. In his two 2021 run-ins with Dallas, he flagged the Cowboys just five times in Week 9 and a season-low three times in Week 16.

Cowboys players and coaches were quick to lay at least some of the blame for their losses to the Raiders, Cardinals, and 49ers on officials. It’s not that any refs have a legitimate bias against Dallas per se, but the team- unluckily, perhaps- did see more than their fair share of officials who have shown a blanket penchant for penalties.

Were Cowboys players guilty of that many more transgressions than everyone else? In part, yes. Left guard Connor Williams led the entire NFL in holding calls, with 11. That’s an issue that may resolve itself, with the otherwise highly-rated Williams about to hit free agency.

But McCarthy and his staff can (and need to) do more to make sure all the Cowboys players give those officiating crews- whoever they happen to draw on any given Sunday- less reason to throw flags in the first place.

To hear McCarthy tell it, that’s Job One this offseason.

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