Nick Foles’ time under center has made the Chicago Bears offense look lighter
Heading toward the last week of the regular season, not many would have expected the Chicago Bears to be a team that’s relying on its offensive firepower to guide them to victory. In fact, the Bears streak of four games with 30+ points is something that hasn’t been seen from the “Monsters of the Midway” since 1965.
However, the return of Mitch Trubisky to the starting lineup has paid unexpected dividends for the team from the Windy City. Despite flip-flopping between wanting Trubisky as the starter and wanting Nick Foles as a starter, I’ve stayed true to a single idea: Trubisky is a good quarterback, at least statistically speaking.
Even though Nick Foles seemingly took Chicago out of the playoff race, his stint as the starter for the Bears was crucial to this team finding an offensive identity. He was a good leader and a weathered NFL vet, but Foles made the offense extremely one-dimensional.
With Trubisky back under center, Matt Nagy’s squad looks like an entirely different team. I’m not certain that you can attribute the improved running game to his return, but the Bears’ offense looks as good as it has in my lifetime. The only plausible reason for this, in my eyes, is the idea that Nick Foles served as a metaphorical batting weight for the Chicago Bears.
Think about it. Athletes use all types of similar techniques to get an edge in their respective sports. Baseball players will put a weight on their bat before they go up to swing, giving them more power when they step up to bat. Sprinters will run in water the day prior to gain an extra bit of explosiveness when they perform in competition.
The Bears put Nick Foles in at quarterback, giving them resistance offensively for half of a season. Now that he’s gone, this offense feels… well, lighter. For the first time in a long time, most of their touchdown drives look easy. It’s not a drive with 12 rushing yards and a 50-yard pass that results in a field goal; it’s simply an efficient offense that scores because they’re outplaying the defense.
There are other factors that have helped the offense in recent games. The Bears have been playing lesser competition in the past few games, but the most obvious reason is Matt Nagy giving up play-calling duties to Bill Lazor. Regardless of the reason, this offense looks better with Trubisky and Lazor than it did with Foles and Nagy. The real test will come on Sunday against a Green Bay Packers team that will need a win.