Bears, Nagy not completely shutting door on Kareem Hunt
By Conor Myles
Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy preached his beliefs in second chances. Will the ex-Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator be willing to offer his former running back one?
Still fresh off a Wild Card upset loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy turned his sights to consoling his former running back during his troubling times. The former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator reached out to Kareem Hunt recently to show his support for the troubled running back.
Nagy says he talked to former Chiefs RB Kareem Hunt a week ago to ask how he’s doing personally. “A good conversation,” he said.
— Rich Campbell (@Rich_Campbell) January 14, 2019
“It’s an unfortunate situation (and) learning lesson for everybody.”
Nagy says he believes in second chances “but every situation is different.”
The first-year coach was with Hunt during his tremendous rookie season in 2017 that saw the running back head to the Pro Bowl after rushing for 1,327 yards. Bringing him into the fold would most likely end the Jordan Howard era in Chicago, but Hunt still has a long way to go before returning to the football field.
The NFL has yet to suspend Hunt due to investigations into three other separate incidents involving former Kansas City’s running back. Hunt still remains on the commissioner’s exempt list.
The 23-year-old running back is facing an uphill climb returning to the NFL. After only spending two seasons in the league, Hunt may very well never see a football field again. The video evidence of him kicking and shoving a 19-year-old female will haunt him throughout the rest of his life.
Previous reports suggested the running back would face a six-game suspension at the minimum for violations of the NFL’s personal conduct policy, given that he was involved in two other incidents.
Bears general manager, Ryan Pace, did everything but close the door on a potential union between the team and Hunt.
Ryan Pace wouldn't rule out the possibility of the Bears signing Kareem Hunt. He did say: "Obviously, there are a lot of things off the field that he has to take care of."
— Chris Emma (@CEmma670) January 14, 2019
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The Bears and Nagy may be willing to offer him a second chance at redemption in light of Monday’s comments. They’re aware of the backlash it will cause and are doing their due diligence at this point. It’ll be interesting to see if they take the plunge, or stick with in house guys such as Howard and Tarik Cohen.