With two preseason games in the books, it’s clear to the naked eye that rookie Justin Fields has played better than anointed starter Andy Dalton. While there are plenty of concerns on offense, the Bears have looked more efficient with Fields under center, and he possesses the tools to counteract some of the offensive deficiencies and breathe some life into Matt Nagy’s dull offense.
But, as we know after three years, Nagy is about as stubborn as they come. So when Nagy reiterated that Dalton would be the Week 1 starter, it wasn’t exactly a surprise. But is certainly wasn’t the right answer.
It wasn’t just Nagy’s refusal to even consider Fields, it was the reasoning behind why he believes Dalton is the better option at this point.
“We need to see him in the regular season,” Nagy told reporters after Saturday’s 41-15 loss to the Bills.
And Nagy has received plenty of criticism for his comments.
Former Chiefs right tackle Mitchell Schwartz had some harsh words for his former offensive coordinator regarding Nagy’s reasoning for needing to evaluate Dalton in the regular season.
“If you’re not able to evaluate them after a month of camp, 3 preseason games, and another few weeks of practice then I don’t know what to tell you. This tells his team that any camp ‘competition’ was useless and their preconceived depth chart is what they’ll stick to, not merit.”
There’s certainly a possibility that Nagy is playing the cautious angle with Fields and not wanting to throw him to the dogs during Sunday Night Football, especially with major concerns on the offensive line.
And while Schwartz recognizes the possibility, he takes issue with how Nagy is going about things.
“And that’s ok if that’s the goal. But the way he goes about it needs fixing. It’s a direct quite: ‘we need to see him in the regular season.’ Just don’t say stuff like that. The implication is that you can’t scout him properly through an entire training camp, which is ridiculous.”
While Schwartz remains a free agent, it doesn’t sound like he’d be interested in signing with the Bears given his disagreement about how Nagy’s handling matters.
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Matt Nagy reiterates Andy Dalton is Bears’ starting QB, and fans aren’t having it
