The Chicago Bears head coach search is over. It has been confirmed that they have named former Chiefs offensive coordinator, Matt Nagy, the next Bears head coach. Nagy (39) had been working under Andy Reid since his Philly tenure in 2008 when he started as a coaching intern. Since then, he worked his way to being the quarterback's coach in Kansas City, and then the offensive coordinator in 2016.
Nagy comes to Chicago replacing John Fox. Unlike the traditional Bears of the past, this team is centered around offensive minds. Nagy had done really good things in Kansas City with Reid, and now, he has the opportunity to work with Mitchell Trubisky and the young core of offensive players.
Because the team's plan is to build around Trubisky, it is no surprise they went with a young and offensive-minded coach.
We have officially named Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy as our new head coach.
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) January 8, 2018
Welcome to Chicago, #HeadCoachNagy. 🐻⬇️ pic.twitter.com/3bcZ0OJOEV
Nagy's success
Nagy's offense in Kansas City the past few years has been very good. Last year, the Chiefs offense had the sixth-best offense in terms of points scored (415) and the fifth-best yards-per-game (375.4). Alex Smith threw a career-high 26 touchdown passes and surpassed the 4,000-yard mark with a 1.0 interception percentage in 2017. Overall, through his tenure in Kansas City, his team had gone to the playoffs every year except 2013.
It is important to note that the playcalling duties were given around mid-season, which helped them get out of a slump and get them back to the playoffs.
While his resume in Kansas City is impressive, he is still very young. This hire is Ryan Pace taking a chance, but looking at what he has accomplished means that Nagy has the potential to greatly pay off.
He "graduates" from an Andy Reid coaching tree that has produced successful NFL head coaches which include John Harbaugh, Ron Rivera, Sean McDermott and Doug Pederson.
Looking forward to Chicago
He comes to Chicago looking to further develop Trubisky and get this team back to the playoffs. There are a number of questions that have yet to be answered obviously, including if he retains defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
Fangio's contract is up tomorrow, and the Bears have really wanted to keep him around after the team's defense has vastly improved the past two years.
In terms of his coaching, he will likely take control of the playcalling even after he hires a new offensive coordinator. Former offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains has left to go to Miami, so he is out of the picture. Either way, this will be Nagy's offense, and do not expect the old John Fox conservative approach and expect the offense to be opened up more. The run game will certainly not be abandoned, but there will be more definitely be more passing plays on offense.
Matt Nagy has a tough road ahead as expectations will be high, and he has pressure to develop a young quarterback. If this goes right, then the Bears can finally get back to their glory.