Both Sides of the Ball Will Miss Vic Fangio and Other Bullets

This wonderful site turn 2 today and we’re soooo growing up.

In fact, in the two years we’ve been around, we’e seen the Bears do some growing up, too. Going from John Fox to Matt Nagy has been a success from the start. The evolution of quarterbacking from Jay Cutler to Mike Glennon to Mitch Trubisky has been a ride. And the transition from stop-gap free agents to multi-year starters should be viewed as a sign of progress for GM Ryan Pace.

The changes are undeniable and they’ve happened so quickly in the two years we’ve been here. This team is unrecognizable from where it was when we got the ball rolling here.

If you have been with us since the beginning, a sincere and hearty thank you. If you recently hopped on board hoping to be along for the ride during a lengthy playoff run, I’m sorry it’s over, but you’re still welcome here for next year’s trek. No matter when you joined, I’m thankful you’re rocking with us. Here’s to bigger and better days ahead.

Now, who brought the cake?

Vic Fangio’s departure reminds me that sometimes the cost of winning is losing:

The Hawl In Hit: Oddly Enough, Vic Fangio’s Success With The Bears Leads To His Departure. @WGNNews pic.twitter.com/ht54bKdObZ

— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) January 10, 2019

Chalk up another “L” for Bears fans this week, who, on top of watching Sunday’s painful playoff ouster, are losing the team’s beloved defensive coordinator for a head-coaching position. Ouch, babe. Even the Sun-Times had to make it a front-page deal:

Back page for Thursday. Bears lose DC Vic Fangio to Broncos. Coverage by @adamjahns https://t.co/yPr6vpiNQl | @patrickfinley https://t.co/fuPue3pxEy | @MarkPotash https://t.co/fuPue3pxEy pic.twitter.com/deFhg8wbDg

— Sun-Times Sports (@suntimes_sports) January 10, 2019

The reactions to the move are what you expect. It’s a mix of congratulations …

.⁦@Broncos⁩ #VicFangio congratulations on your next post. Can’t wait to watch you mold this team into a playoff contender in 2019. Well deserved. #baldysbreakdowns pic.twitter.com/DhltgrydwM

— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) January 9, 2019

… to expletives which have been withheld:

#cursewords

— Prince Amukamara (@PrinceAmukamara) January 9, 2019

You know Fangio was an impactful coach when offensive players are feeling his loss:

https://twitter.com/AllenRobinson/status/1083048570985635841

Allen Robinson’s tweet reminded me of why I believe Fangio would be a successful head coach. Fangio’s ability to communicate wasn’t limited to defensive players. He connected with the media and clearly to players on the other side of the ball. That’s what Matt Nagy did as an offensive guy and I have no doubts Fangio will do the same when he’s viewed as the defensive-leaning head coach in Denver. In any case, he’ll certainly be missed.

This is trippy:

Odd, but interesting nugget unearthed by @sportsdenver. The #Bears last two defensive coordinators now head coaching in Colorado: @RunRalphieRun's Mel Tucker and #Broncos Vic Fangio. #Denver7

— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) January 9, 2019

To be clear, this isn’t a gloom-and-doom situation. Sure, Fangio will probably try and bring some assistants with him to Denver and will leave the Bears searching for replacements. But remember, all but two starters (Bryce Callahan, Adrian Amos) are under contract for next year and a vast majority of them are young. The oldest of the returning bunch will be cornerback Prince Amukamara and defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, both will be playing 2019 in their age 30 seasons. The “old” guys are 30! A young 30, at that. Yeah, this group is in decent shape.

How is this for perspective?

Bears fans worried about regression post-Fangio:

Since 2000, the Baltimore Ravens have had 8 different defensive coordinators and still managed to ave. ranking in the top 10 in total DEF over those 18 years.

Elite coaching is a byproduct of elite personnel, rarily vice versa.

— Mysterious Groin AF (@TyYoungfelt) January 9, 2019

Death, taxes, and the Ravens defense being stout as heck. Those are the three guarantees in life. Because while the personnel and scheme have changed over the years, Baltimore’s defense still pieces together units that are more of a strength than they are a weakness. That’s a testament to scouting, drafting, and development. Retiring GM Ozzie Newsome should get a whole bunch of credit for keeping the good times rolling in an era when it’s not easy to do so because of cap constraints and constant roster turnover.

You’re up, Ryan Pace.

I love alternate endings:

Cody Parkey's Missed FG Re-Edited so the Bears Win… pic.twitter.com/abpbUoMMTW

— TPS (@TotalProSports) January 9, 2019

The amount of editing talent to successfully splice up enough tape to create a made Cody Parkey field goal is otherworldly. Kudos to the content creator behind that video.

Three teams with the 10 easiest schedules resided in the NFC North in 2018, but the Bears were the only ones to take advantage of it and make the playoffs:

Final 2018 Strength of Schedule based on overall team efficiency:

10 Easiest Schedules:
1-IND**
2-CHI**
3-GB
4-HOU**
5-MIA
6-NYG
7-NE**
8-DAL**
9-MIN
10-WAS
**=Playoffs

10 Toughest Schedules:
32-OAK
31-CIN
30-CLE
29-PIT
28-DEN
27-ARI
26-SF
25-KC**
24-BUF
23-TB

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 9, 2019

Funny. I didn’t hear many (if any) talk about the Colts, Texans, or Cowboys making postseason runs because of the ease of their schedule. Odd how that works sometimes…

Admittedly, the Bears got off easy from a scheduling standpoint. But they’ve had light schedules int he past because of prior last-place finishes. Why didn’t they take advantage of those then? The simple answer is better coaching and a raised level of talent helped the Bears multi-fold in 2018. Now, sustaining that success is the challenge that faces this group next.

Considering they have bigger fish to fry, I understand the delay here:

For #Bears fans wondering, Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy will not have their season-ending press conference this week. Earliest it will happen is Monday, but nothing is scheduled right now. Obviously their focus is on finding a new defensive coordinator.

— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) January 10, 2019

An old friend gets a new job:

The back page: The Jets have their man https://t.co/3paNJP8uyz pic.twitter.com/4xfMm1PwDX

— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) January 10, 2019

And he’ll probably get to take another one of his pals with him:

Barring any contractual snags, you can expect Dowell Loggains to join Adam Gase as his main offensive assistant with the Jets, sources say. Loggains served as Gase’s offensive coordinator in Miami in 2018.

— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) January 10, 2019

For the record, I sure as heck don’t miss Dowell Loggains:

Rumor is Loggains with Gase in NY. From my book last summer, a number of issues with the Bears 2017 offense under Loggains.

In MIA last yr, passing in 11 v 12:
11: 7.0 YPA, 43% success, 91 RTG
12: 10.8 YPA, 56% success, 136 RTG
He used 11 fourth most of any team, very little 12 pic.twitter.com/QGdp2FdyK6

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 10, 2019

If this was a Bears coach giving this speech, I’d be ready to play ball right now:

This will probably be the best thing you hear all day, courtesy of Eric Bieniemy. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/HmMtR0ch5e

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 9, 2019

How long until Eric Bienemy is the next branch off the Andy Reid coaching tree?