The Bears offense was far from explosive in 2018. But they were good enough that — with a dominant defense — the Bears were able to make a postseason appearance.
It was understandable. They were learning a new system — one that they were told was complex and would take a couple of years to master. But there was comfort in the fact that, after a full season and another offseason, the players would grow to master Matt Nagy’s offense in Year 2.
Only, that didn’t happen.
In fact, they regressed beyond their wildest imaginations. Chicago’s offense was one of the worst in the NFL in 2019, ranking near the bottom of most statistical categories.
There are many factors that went into the Bears’ offense struggles, starting with quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and trickling down through play calling, offensive line play, lack of production from tight ends and the complete absence of a run game.
Retired Bear Kyle Long said that the offense’s struggles came down to two factors.
“Health and the running game,” Long said, via WGN. “Those are the two things that separated the seasons.”
While Nagy and Trubisky have garnered most of the blame for the offense’s regression, Long said that it was more than just them.
“People want to place the blame on Matt (Nagy), or they want to place the blame on Mitch (Trubisky), and that’s unfair because there’s so many people on the field that dictate how the game ends up,” Long said.
Changes are coming to the Bears offense. Some have already happened, with the hirings of offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo, offensive line coach Juan Castillo and tight ends coach Clancy Barone.
Long offered up his opinion on how the Bears can fix their offensive struggles.
“I think if you draft early and invest in early picks on the offensive and defensive line, you’ll never go wrong,” he said. “Everybody else does well when the offensive line does well. And you look around the playoffs and you look at Super Bowl Sunday and what do these two groups have in common? Great o-lines.”
