How Nagy’s Andy Dalton Obsession Bought Him Fired In One Damning Chart
There have been a number of causes Matt Nagy acquired fired final month, however one virtually at all times stands above the remainder. One determination lit the fuse on the powder keg. For a lot of, it was the choice by the previous Chicago Bears head coach to bench Justin Fields in favor of Andy Dalton. Nagy made his agenda clear from the beginning. He supposed to repeat the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs’ strategy with Patrick Mahomes. Sit the proficient rookie behind an skilled veteran.
He by no means acknowledged the issues with this strategy from the beginning. Dalton was not the identical participant Alex Smith was again in 2017. Smith had been entrenched as a starter with Kansas Metropolis for years. He knew the offense in and out by that time. Dalton had but to take a single snap in Chicago. Assuming he’d be capable of play at a Professional Bowl stage as Smith did that 12 months was a exceptional stage of delusion.
But Nagy didn’t cease there.
He was so satisfied the strategy would work that he didn’t even give himself an outlet. Nearly each single snap with the first-team offense was given to Dalton in coaching camp. Fields was relegated to the second workforce. He wasn’t even allowed an opportunity to compete for the beginning job. This determination surprised many on the time. It was felt Nagy was inviting catastrophe if Dalton performed dangerous or acquired injured.
Everyone is aware of what occurred subsequent. Dalton suffered a bone bruise in his knee in Week 2 in opposition to Cincinnati, forcing the rookie into motion. Nagy was not ready for this, and every thing got here to a head the next week in Cleveland, the place Fields was sacked 9 occasions and had one web passing yard. That was the true starting of Nagy’s downfall.
But if persons are extra involved in exhausting proof of how insane the complete state of affairs was, look no additional than this glorious chart created by Johnathan Wooden of Da Bears Weblog.
“I’ll get to a extra typical desk with concrete numbers in a second, however for now the graph under reveals what number of dropbacks (cross makes an attempt + sacks) have been wanted to provide an explosive cross for all 33 QBs with 200+ passing makes an attempt in 2021. The 2 Bears samples (Fields and the Dalton/Foles combo) have their dots proven in orange.”
Fields outdid Andy Dalton regardless of getting actively sabotaged
It took the veteran greater than twice as lengthy between explosive performs because it did the rookie. Dalton threw extra interceptions than touchdowns too, similar to Fields. This hammers house the complete level. Nagy’s logic behind the complete “plan” was flawed from the beginning. His willingness to double down on Dalton by deliberately robbing his proficient rookie of reps with the starters. It was sheer lunacy.
If the top coach had devoted every thing to Fields from the beginning and even simply made it an open competitors, he may’ve saved himself. As an alternative, he put all his eggs within the Andy Dalton basket and acted shocked when stated basket splattered everywhere in the Soldier Discipline turf. It was last proof that Nagy by no means had a agency grasp on tips on how to deal with creating gamers. His answer was at all times the identical.
Simply copy what the Chiefs did.
He by no means realized that doing such issues isn’t a good suggestion. Each as a result of the Bears didn’t have the identical gamers as Kansas Metropolis, and Nagy himself just isn’t Andy Reid. Competent coaches adapt to the state of affairs they’re in. If he’d been extra self-aware, he’d have acknowledged the chances of failure for Dalton have been excessive. But he plowed forward anyway. Now each males are unemployed.
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