Vikings’ Rival Is in Total Disarray
Not long ago, the Chicago Bears owned a 4-2 record and appeared to be cruising toward an honest-to-goodness Wildcard playoff chase.
Vikings’ Rival Is in Total Disarray
Then, the last three weeks and games happened, and Chicago turned to total disarray.
The first step for repair involved a termination, as Chicago fired its offensive coordinator, Shane Waldron, on Tuesday. NFL Network‘s Tom Pelissero tweeted, “Sources: Shane Waldron is out as Bears offensive coordinator. Thomas Brown is expected to take over.”
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus — who could be next on the chopping block — said about the transaction: “After evaluating our entire operation, I decided that it is in the best interest of our team to move in a different direction with the leadership of our offense. This decision was well-thought-out, one that was conducted deliberately and respectfully. I would like to thank Shane for his efforts and wish him the best moving forward.”
Chicago’s offense has fallen on gravely harsh times, failing to score an offensive touchdown in the last two weeks. During the first seven weeks of the regular season, the Bears’ offense ranked 18th per EPA/Play. Not good — but not horrid. However, in the last three weeks, Chicago’s offense has ranked dead last in the sport per offensive efficiency. Nothing is going right on offense in Chicago.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter even speculated out loud this week that Chicago could bench its franchise savior quarterback Caleb Williams.
“I would expect that they’ll be some sort of change in Chicago on the offensive side of the football. Is that changing the play caller? Is that changing the quarterback and benching Caleb Williams for Tyson Bagent? I think all these things are being discussed in the building today,” Schefter said before the Waldron termination.
Some Chicago media entities have also hinted that Bears players would rather have Bagent in the lineup instead of Williams, though those theories feel like rumors at the moment.
Williams ranks 29th of 31 qualifying passers per EPA+CPOE, an efficiency metric measuring expected wins added. If one ever wanted to know why some quarterbacks watch and learn from the sidelines to start their careers, the current Chicago commotion is a case study.
Thankfully for the Bears’ sake, the defense is legitimate. It ranks fifth leaguewide per EPA/Play entering Week 11 and has not faltered during the regular season. The same cannot be said for the offense.
In fact, the Bears’ early-season prosperity might’ve been propped up by an easy schedule. When Week 7 rolled around, Chicago began facing stiffer competition and has gone winless.
The Vikings play the Bears in 12 days.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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