The Chicago Bears hired Shane Waldron, a sign that there will be changes at offensive coordinator this year. Going from Luke Getsy to Shane Waldron should be an upgrade, but there are plenty of things that will just be different as well.
What does Waldron bring that the Bears may not have had?
3. The Chicago Bears will play under center more efficiently
The Chicago Bears did not play under center much with Luke Getsy. They were under on 24% of their offensive snaps, which ranks 24th in the NFL. Meanwhile, the Seahawks were up at 31%, which was 14th in the NFL. This is expected to continue when you consider Waldron came from the Sean McVay coaching tree. The Rams were under center 38% of the time last year, one of the highest rates in the NFL. They have consistently been that way under McVay, and you have to assume that Waldron will play that style as well.
The Seahawks ranked 11th in rushing the ball under center, and this is typically where McVay's scheme works the best. Meanwhile, the Bears were 19th in rushing the ball under center despite having a better rushing offense than Seattle overall.
Still, Seattle also had more success passing the ball from under. The success of running in this formation only increases the passing success. Seattle had a -6.9% pass rate over expected under center. That sounds low until you hear that the Bears had a -22.6 % pass rate over expected when they were under center. It will be less predictable. They will lean on the run here but have more success passing.
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