The Nagy-Pace party is back for another year

[Stinger226]

Just heard they are bringing the band back. Also Pagano retiring. They need to promote Jay Rodgers to DC job. A future stud

[Bill]

So if true.  No big changes.  No way Pace and Nagy say they have bet the farm and lost.  Just a few changes here and there.  Disappointing.  Years more of mediocrity    

[adam]

So this means Trubisky and ARob are gone. Based on some of their recent comments, this makes a lot of sense now.

I am pissed about Pace more than Nagy. Nagy was handed Trubisky and with all the money going to the defense, it did not perform to its value. 

I can't believe they actually decided to bring Pace back. He is seriously terrible at his job. I can't wait to see another D2 or D3 player drafted 4 rounds early in April.

[ASHKUM BEAR]

We seen this writing on the wall.  We know the cap is going to be drastically lowered.  We know the Bears main source of income is Chicago Bear revenue. Spending on a new GM, most likely a coach, a QB, and filling the rest of the roster is too much on a down year. So, we have a do or die year with a lame duck coach/gm.  The DC will be either someone from within or a young unknown who needs the opportunity at the cost of this being a one and done year.  Don't be surprised other coaches/scouts depart knowing next season is most likely the last here.  Pace and Nagy have a ton of work to earn another contract.  The next question is can they turn the team around and how.

[Alaskan Grizzly]

Saw it mentioned earlier but frankly I’m disappointed Pagano had to go out this way (retiring).  I think the players on D let him down more than he letting them down.  

https://theathletic.com/2319252/2021/01/12/chicago-bears-defensive-coordinator-chuck-pagano-to-retire-sources/

With Pace and Nagy coming back I suspect the rest of the team will be lost before the end of the first game next season.   

[jason]

https://twitter.com/DavidHaugh/status/1349167471308263432?s=20

LOL. So true.

[Stinger226]

5 hours ago, Alaskan Grizzly said:

Saw it mentioned earlier but frankly I’m disappointed Pagano had to go out this way (retiring).  I think the players on D let him down more than he letting them down.  

https://theathletic.com/2319252/2021/01/12/chicago-bears-defensive-coordinator-chuck-pagano-to-retire-sources/

With Pace and Nagy coming back I suspect the rest of the team will be lost before the end of the first game next season.   

I think the stars on the D have not been playing up to their contract but when some of your schemes have a LB covering a speedy WR, something is wrong with that scheme. I think he isnt aggressive enough. This is the best way for Pagano to leave, I think he might have been let go so this saves him a bad look.

[madlithuanian]

I’m voting with my dollars. I will spend no money on any Bears items. I will not attend game unless I have to (I'm currently on the waiting list) and not buy any concessions. All until I see 2 seasons in a row of real success. I do not trust the Bears to do anything right. This is amateur hour.  The only potential that this isn't a complete joke of a franchise is that they are just being cheap.  They see the schedule next year and know it's doomed.  So, why eat these contracts.  Let it play out and let them go after.  You can fire Nagy and just say Pace is a FA next year.  Then rebuild.  Maybe Georgie Boy told Pace he can't change draft stock, so draft where you are, so he doesn't sabotage future seasons.  I'll be curious how the draft plays out.  it might speak more to this theory...

[jason]

3 hours ago, madlithuanian said:

I’m voting with my dollars. I will spend no money on any Bears items. I will not attend game unless I have to (I'm currently on the waiting list) and not buy any concessions. All until I see 2 seasons in a row of real success. I do not trust the Bears to do anything right. This is amateur hour.  The only potential that this isn't a complete joke of a franchise is that they are just being cheap.  They see the schedule next year and know it's doomed.  So, why eat these contracts.  Let it play out and let them go after.  You can fire Nagy and just say Pace is a FA next year.  Then rebuild.  Maybe Georgie Boy told Pace he can't change draft stock, so draft where you are, so he doesn't sabotage future seasons.  I'll be curious how the draft plays out.  it might speak more to this theory...

That's me for 2+ years now. It's also why my viewing interest is so low. If I'm not excited about the Bears, why watch the NFL? 

[ASHKUM BEAR]

I give into the early hype every year until they rebound back to their normal suckage. For me to believe, they have to draft two starting caliber OTs and a QB that has the tools to be a top 10 QB year in and out. If they go differently, I will check them out early  but know we are done and the new Brown Bag Browns and De-toliet Lions without hope for another 3-5 years.

[adam]

I think they brought Pace back to live with the train wreck he has put together for the 2021 season. No other GM in their right mind would want to take on this mess and then get blamed for a 4-12 season right after an 8-8 season. 

The cap situation with the COVID impact has made this basically an impossible task. I bet they brought Pace back but said you cannot push anything into the future. So no trading of future picks or extending/restructuring contracts of players unless approved by higher. Also, no dead money can extend beyond 2021. If they do that, I actually like the decision. Let Pace try to save himself without handcuffing the future. If he pulls it off, he may get an extension. If he fails and the team gets worse (highly likely), then he is the scapegoat and he is fired. Then the new GM comes in with a much better cap situation and no lost draft picks in 2022 and can shape the roster to their liking much easier. 

[ChileBear]

12 hours ago, jason said:

That's me for 2+ years now. It's also why my viewing interest is so low. If I'm not excited about the Bears, why watch the NFL? 

Same here. Just sad that what I was once so happily passionate for has dwindled to this.

[BearFan PHX]

2 hours ago, adam said:

I think they brought Pace back to live with the train wreck he has put together for the 2021 season. No other GM in their right mind would want to take on this mess and then get blamed for a 4-12 season right after an 8-8 season. 

The cap situation with the COVID impact has made this basically an impossible task. I bet they brought Pace back but said you cannot push anything into the future. So no trading of future picks or extending/restructuring contracts of players unless approved by higher. Also, no dead money can extend beyond 2021. If they do that, I actually like the decision. Let Pace try to save himself without handcuffing the future. If he pulls it off, he may get an extension. If he fails and the team gets worse (highly likely), then he is the scapegoat and he is fired. Then the new GM comes in with a much better cap situation and no lost draft picks in 2022 and can shape the roster to their liking much easier. 

I agree with all of this - I've been thinking the same.

Except I don't want Pace back after next year, no matter what the team does. I mean yes i suppose, if he fills the team with undrafted rookies that all become pro bowlers and they go 16-0 and win the Super Bowl by 1,000 points, then would you bring him back? I GUESS so.

But in the real world, if they make Pace live with his own mess, with no future value allowed to be spent now, fine. You're right they wont get the best candidates anyway. Kind of like how we had to have FOx before we could get a young up and coming genius. Except we got Nagy instead.

But all of that is predicated on the idea that a great hire isn't interested. If you speak to someone and they're willing to brave through next year so that it will be their 2021 draft picks they begin the 2022 season with, then don't hesitate to lose Pace.

[Stinger226]

4 hours ago, adam said:

I think they brought Pace back to live with the train wreck he has put together for the 2021 season. No other GM in their right mind would want to take on this mess and then get blamed for a 4-12 season right after an 8-8 season. 

The cap situation with the COVID impact has made this basically an impossible task. I bet they brought Pace back but said you cannot push anything into the future. So no trading of future picks or extending/restructuring contracts of players unless approved by higher. Also, no dead money can extend beyond 2021. If they do that, I actually like the decision. Let Pace try to save himself without handcuffing the future. If he pulls it off, he may get an extension. If he fails and the team gets worse (highly likely), then he is the scapegoat and he is fired. Then the new GM comes in with a much better cap situation and no lost draft picks in 2022 and can shape the roster to their liking much easier. 

I think you're right, Pace will have limitations going forward. I read where Phillips was going to retire, (not true) we could have brought in a President that would oversee what Pace does, but that aint happening. Mainly because of the covid thing happening again this year, I think redoing everything with those limitations are considered in the process. Dont like it but this year will be another 8-8 season. Watch Quinn have 10 sacks this year and they will praise Pace for the bad contract. 

[McGowan]

Lots of rumors that Bettcher is going to be the next DC. He's an anti-Pagano when it comes to aggressive defense. 

[adam]

13 minutes ago, McGowan said:

Lots of rumors that Bettcher is going to be the next DC. He's an anti-Pagano when it comes to aggressive defense. 

The guy that was fired from the Giants?

[BearFan PHX]

I don't want someone with the opposite scheme - I want someone smart who knows how to call plays and read an opponent's intentions.

I want someone who understands the abilities and limitations of each player and plays to strengths.

I want someone good. They dont need to blitz on every down just to prove the Pagano's fewer blitzes were wrong. Had Pagano known when to call man and zone with a crystal ball, we'd have a top defense even without blitzing. ANd Im not anti blitz either. I just dont think anything about Pagano - including his opposite, is worth considering. Just get someone good who gets the job done well.

[McGowan]

23 minutes ago, adam said:

The guy that was fired from the Giants?

Yep, him. He was pretty good with AZ before that though. 

[Alaskan Grizzly]

Saw this article recently on NBC news.  It lists 17 potential candidates (Boettcher was one).  If you read the whole article and the reasoning for considering each candidate, especially the first 3-4 it makes sense.  Someone here suggested Jay Rodgers as an ‘inside hire’ (#1 on the list) and I think that is a sound suggestion.

https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/bears/bears-defensive-coordinator-search-17-coaches-who-could-replace-chuck-pagano

[jason]

8 hours ago, adam said:

I think they brought Pace back to live with the train wreck he has put together for the 2021 season. No other GM in their right mind would want to take on this mess and then get blamed for a 4-12 season right after an 8-8 season. 

The cap situation with the COVID impact has made this basically an impossible task. I bet they brought Pace back but said you cannot push anything into the future. So no trading of future picks or extending/restructuring contracts of players unless approved by higher. Also, no dead money can extend beyond 2021. If they do that, I actually like the decision. Let Pace try to save himself without handcuffing the future. If he pulls it off, he may get an extension. If he fails and the team gets worse (highly likely), then he is the scapegoat and he is fired. Then the new GM comes in with a much better cap situation and no lost draft picks in 2022 and can shape the roster to their liking much easier. 

It makes sense, but it's flawed from a management and ownership perspective. Why permit the anticipated failure? It would be better to cut bait, tell any incoming HC they have carte blanche on personnel decisions, and expect it to be a three year process. I distinctly remember people on this board saying the very same thing in Pace's defense when anyone challenged is wonderful picks. 

Then a new guy comes in, blows it up one year early because he doesn't have a relationship or loyalty to any players, and the Bears are on the road to recovery assuming the new guy makes good picks, etc. If I'm the new guy, the first thing I do is look for guys who aren't performing up to their salary and have huge cap hits without dead cap numbers. I'd attempt to trade the following guys for picks, immediately:

• Akiem Hicks ($12M Cap, $1.5M Dead) - Easy choice. He's fallen off the last two years. Get something for him while there is still a market.
• Bobbie Massie ($9.3M Cap, $2.3M Dead) - He sucks. Next.
• Jimmy Graham ($10M Cap, $3M Dead) - Thanks for the year of tutelage; it's time for Kmet to prove himself.
• Charles Leno ($11.2M Cap, $5M Dead) - He sucks worse than Massie. Bye.

The other players to consider either don't have a significant cap hit, or have a prohibitive dead cap figure.

[adam]

1 hour ago, jason said:

It makes sense, but it's flawed from a management and ownership perspective. Why permit the anticipated failure? It would be better to cut bait, tell any incoming HC they have carte blanche on personnel decisions, and expect it to be a three year process. I distinctly remember people on this board saying the very same thing in Pace's defense when anyone challenged is wonderful picks. 

Then a new guy comes in, blows it up one year early because he doesn't have a relationship or loyalty to any players, and the Bears are on the road to recovery assuming the new guy makes good picks, etc. If I'm the new guy, the first thing I do is look for guys who aren't performing up to their salary and have huge cap hits without dead cap numbers. I'd attempt to trade the following guys for picks, immediately:

• Akiem Hicks ($12M Cap, $1.5M Dead) - Easy choice. He's fallen off the last two years. Get something for him while there is still a market.
• Bobbie Massie ($9.3M Cap, $2.3M Dead) - He sucks. Next.
• Jimmy Graham ($10M Cap, $3M Dead) - Thanks for the year of tutelage; it's time for Kmet to prove himself.
• Charles Leno ($11.2M Cap, $5M Dead) - He sucks worse than Massie. Bye.

The other players to consider either don't have a significant cap hit, or have a prohibitive dead cap figure.

Oh, I agree, you are just kicking the can down the road. It's like putting off cleaning out your shed/garage until next spring. The crap is just going to be a year older. Might as well cut sling and get rid of your Gazelle and Shake Weights this year, even though you still owe two years on them through Fingerhut.

If you cleaned house now, you also have the option of trading out of this year's draft and into 2022's knowing those will be your picks. 

 

[madlithuanian]

2 minutes ago, adam said:

Oh, I agree, you are just kicking the can down the road. It's like putting off cleaning out your shed/garage until next spring. The crap is just going to be a year older. Might as well cut sling and get rid of your Gazelle and Shake Weights this year, even though you still owe two years on them through Fingerhut.

If you cleaned house now, you also have the option of trading out of this year's draft and into 2022's knowing those will be your picks. 

 

When Pace is finally relieved of duties after 2021 when we go 4-12...he will give the keys to the barn, and then toss a Molotov cocktail behind him and burn the barn down as he walks away.  He will mortgage the future away so that no GM coming in will be able to have much success for a number of years.  The draft will speak volumes.  If Pace doesn't give up much draft capital if any, it means George is telling him to just lay low and give us one more year of service.  I'm not sure George is shrewd enough for that scenario.  But, it's possible.  It's all a ruse to just really tank and re-boot next season. 

[Mongo3451]

21 hours ago, madlithuanian said:

When Pace is finally relieved of duties after 2021 when we go 4-12...he will give the keys to the barn, and then toss a Molotov cocktail behind him and burn the barn down as he walks away.  He will mortgage the future away so that no GM coming in will be able to have much success for a number of years.  The draft will speak volumes.  If Pace doesn't give up much draft capital if any, it means George is telling him to just lay low and give us one more year of service.  I'm not sure George is shrewd enough for that scenario.  But, it's possible.  It's all a ruse to just really tank and re-boot next season. 

They know exactly what they are doing.  This football team is their life's business.  I believe it was said when free agency began that George Halas was rolling over in his grave.  They all know the business of football, but they also know money is why they do it.