NFL insider says Bears expected to fire Matt Nagy and begin replacement search after Week 18
By Josh Hill
The Chicago Bears finally seem to have reached a decision on the future of head coach Matt Nagy.
It’s beginning to become a case of crying wolf for Bears fans, but the future of head coach Matt Nagy seems to already be sealed.
Despite rumors dating back to Thanksgiving that Chicago would be firing its underperforming head coach, Nagy has persisted and even turned in some weirdly cathartic moments for fans down the stretch of the season. But fans have been hearing for months about rumbling regarding the future of Nagy, so more o
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport has thrown his weight behind the rumors, however. On Sunday, Rapoport reported that the Bears have privately been discussing and deciding Nagy’s future and it’s one that doesn’t have a place in Chicago.
Rapoport also notes that Bearss ownership is expected to begin the work of finding a new head coach after Week 18 concludes next Sunday.
"After that, the Bears brass will hold discussions, and the likely outcome is that they will move on from Nagy, sources say."
For what it’s worth, Nagy has been taking an endless barrage of public scrutiny in stride.
"According to those in the building, Nagy has been business as usual, not making his future a major topic of conversation and focusing only on his team closing out the season the right way. There are factors he can handle, and factors he can’t, and he has been focused on those that he can."
The Bears firing Nagy won’t bring the type of relief to fans that ownership might assume such a move would have. Fans have been living out the fantasy of having Nagy fired since Thanksgiving when the first rumblings of getting rid of him began to surface. the crosshairs of the fanbase are squarely placed on general manager Ryan Pace and team president Ted Phillips, both of whom are being blamed for creating the problem that Nagy failed to make any better.
While fans have chanted for Nagy’s job everywhere from Bulls games to high school football fields, the true villains of the story appear to be Pace and Phillips. Until either of them are removed, Bears fans will accept Nagy’s firing as a sign of the cycle repeating itself rather than being broken.