Even though Chicago Bears Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio was reportedly a hot commodity this offseason, the defensive coordinator returns for his third year with the team, and has been busy during Senior Bowl week.
With sub-par grades along the front seven and in the secondary, Fangio has had his eyes on some of college football’s most promising defensive prospects.
This is where the groundwork gets laid. With two defensive wizards at the top of the command chain, the Bears figure to be in position to take advantage of the opportunity to interact with these players first hand. From there, the hope is they can pluck some of the best and plug them into a defense that needs all the help it can get.
Right now, Fangio’s top priority is scouting the Senior Bowl and combing through dozens of defensive players in search of future playmakers. Over at ChicagoBears.com, Fangio talks about what goes into scouting the Senior Bowl, highlighting the difference between these showcase exhibitions and the combine, and what he looks for in a player – among other things.
There aren’t too many advantages to a 3-13 season, but one might be having a 15-minute interview with a potential draft pick and then seeing them perform in the flesh. “When you’re with these guys in meetings seeing them in team settings, you get more true exposure to them,” Fangio said.
After a year in which the Bears defense didn’t come up with enough turnovers to stay competitive and compensate for an inconsistent offense, Fangio explained what he was looking for out of the players he was coaching at the Senior Bowl. “Guys that show they have the ball skills to catch it, find it and make a play,” he said. “Some guys have the innate ability to do it, some guys don’t. You can usually see it right away if they have the opportunities in practice.”
So, what is the end game in Mobile, Ala.? “You’re just looking for talent to be honest. It’s a lot of little things,” Fangio said.
When the scouting and drafting are done, the next step is to mold these players into productive pros. And what will separate good teams from bad is winning the turnover battle. “To be a good defense you got to be able to take the ball away and we haven’t done that well,” Fangio said. “We got to find guys that can do it. We’ve got to improve in a lot of areas. If you improve a little bit in all spots, the takeaways will come as long as you have the guys with a knack for doing it.”
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On top of all his scouting duties, Fangio has added a new responsibility and job title – outside linebackers coach. Clint Hurtt and the Bears parted way at season’s end, but Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that, rather than replace him, the Bears simply added coaching outside linebackers to the list of Fangio’s responsibilities – until further notice, that is. If it stands as a long-term title, this means Fangio will be working directly with – among others – 2016 first-round pick Leonard Floyd.
This is a role Fangio is familiar with, having coached San Francisco 49ers linebackers from 2011-14 along with his defensive coordinator duties. “I like coaching. It does take a little bit more time and effort,” Fangio told the Sun-Times. “But I’ve done it before, so that part doesn’t worry me.” In a piece outlining the evolving nature of Fangio’s role, Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune reports Fox “allowed for the possibility” of the Bears bringing in another outside linebackers coach.
Even though the Bears defense isn’t Super Bowl-ready, one of Fangio’s former pupils will be playing in the big game. Patriots linebacker Shea McClellin, a first-round pick of Phil Emery that Fox, Fangio, and this coaching staff inherited, is taking his talents to Houston to play in the Super Bowl. Count Fangio as someone who is happy for the ex-Bears linebacker, telling Adam Hoge of WGN Radio:
Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.
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NEWSLETTER
Even though Chicago Bears Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio was reportedly a hot commodity this offseason, the defensive coordinator returns for his third year with the team, and has been busy during Senior Bowl week.
