The turnaround from Sunday to Thursday is so quick for the Chicago Bears, Head Coach Matt Nagy isn’t even going back to watch the tape. No, seriously.
“I have not gone back and watched the tape, so we’re onto Detroit,” Nagy said while meeting with the media at Halas Hall on Monday. “What I saw last night is what I saw, and we’re moving on here to Detroit.”
If Nagy saw what we saw, then I can understand why he wouldn’t need a tape review to further assess the situation. The win against the Vikings featured a ferocious defense, an improved performance by a much-maligned special teams unit, and an offense that did just enough to close out a victory. Mitch Trubisky could use some tweaks, the running game might need a tune up, and perhaps the team’s pass-catchers could use some reps to work out some kinks when it comes to spacing. But rather than focus on the minutiae of Sunday’s game, Nagy appears to be focusing on ensuring the team’s physical well-being heading into another important game that will be televised in front of a national audience. And as far as I’m concerned, that’s totally cool.
From Day 1, Nagy has talked about the importance of healthy bodies contributing in games that matter. And since he has taken over as the head coach, he’s put his words into action when it comes to giving his team the best chance at being healthy on game day. There is no reason to change that now as the team enters the shortest of short weeks.
So what will the Bears do in the three days they’ll have to prepare? Nagy said the team will focus on classroom work and could go through a light walk-through. The message from Nagy is simple enough: “We want to work smarter, not harder.”
This is the best approach for a team that simply doesn’t have enough hours in the day to execute a normal prep week. Even a condensed version of what the team does would be difficult to put together with such a short turnaround. Get well physically and mentally, then be ready to get back at it on Thursday.