I (along with just about anyone who follows the Bears) have sounded off all that I can on the team’s coaching staff, not only for their performance and decision-making in Week 8 against the Commanders but also for their reluctance to take any accountability at all.
And then Bears Offensive Coordinator Shane Waldron met the media today at Halas Hall.
Shane Waldron Doubles Down On Bad Play Call
Not only did Shane Waldron not take accountability for the bad play call, but he went so far as to say he would call it again in the same exact situation. He also made sure to mention that they had repped the play several times in practice and that “it wasn’t a clean handoff.”
Well, I’d hope you repped the handoff to a player who’s never taken a handoff before a few times. But again, this is the same sentiment as what Head Coach Matt Eberflus said all week about his poor handling of the last two plays. Essentially it boils down to: “Well, we worked on it in practice, but the players didn’t execute.” So not only did you bus-toss your guard-playing fullback, but you also made sure your rookie quarterback was under that bus, too!
Dude, you were trailing by five points in the fourth quarter of a game. You had nothing going for you offensively EXCEPT for your running backs. D’Andre Swift was having a hell of a game. Roschon Johnson has been money from the goal line all year. JUST ADMIT YOU MADE A MISTAKE. IT’S OK TO DO THAT, AND YOU WON’T LOSE ANY CREDIBILITY. Players admit when they play poorly. Why is it so difficult for coaches to admit to their errors? Players can’t be thrilled to have accountability preached to them regularly, only to see their coaches not practice what they preach. How often Bears leaders have spoken out to the media this week only fuels that narrative.
Don’t agree with me? What about former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf:
When I did stupid stuff, I didn’t own up to it either, and my a** was out of the league pretty quick…he might want to learn from my dumb thinking. Like, just own it. Bad call. Stupid thing to do in that situation…come on man, why do you double down on that stuff…I do get it because I did it too, there’s an ego thing, you believe you are smarter than the people asking the questions, you are the ones that are in the room making the decisions…all of that stuff.
No, this was an inappropriate play call at the most inappropriate time, and the exact thing happend that should have happened when a center who’s never carried the ball before is at the goal line and gets hit immediately when the ball is handed to him.
Ryan Leaf via 670 The Score
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not one of these people who feels coaches and players owe the media a bunch of information. That’s not what I’m saying. Matt Eberflus and Shane Waldron probably shouldn’t care too much about the information the media feels entitled to. However, what they should care about is not making their players look bad and throwing them under the bus. You are inadvertently taking shots at the guys in the locker room by refusing to take accountability and doubling down on your mistakes.
I just feel like I’m taking crazy pills here. I don’t really love to rant on coaching, but if there’s one thing that upsets me most about them, it’s when they refuse to own up to mistakes. Just be better. Acknowledge your mistakes. Vow to improve. We all pull the rope together.