The Chicago Bears have suffered two brutal defeats coming out of their bye. It started with the smackdown against New Orleans where they clearly looked overmatched. Then the heartbreaker last Sunday against the Chargers that saw them cough up a 16-10 lead late and miss what would've been the game-winning field goal at the end. At 3-4 with the NFC looking stacked with contenders, it feels like this team just isn't capable of bringing itself back together for a late run. Matt Nagy though isn't ready to surrender yet.
He's no stranger to slow starts during a season. He offered an example from back in 2015 where his Kansas City Chiefs got off to a 1-5 start. Everybody in the world declared them dead, especially with the Pittsburgh Steelers coming to town. However, the Chiefs managed to put together a strong performance and upset the visitors 23-13. That win was a huge relief for the team, and they went on eight-straight games.
Nagy feels this team is capable of something similar, and the players seem to share that same feeling as well.
"I have players that are coming up to me that are telling me, 'We got this, Coach.' That's all I really need, which is cool because you're put in a business where you're at the top of the top with these players. There's a lot of great competition. So the parity in this league and the coaching in this league is really good and it's close.
So when you have adversity and you hit a couple lows into your season, you obviously never know how your team's going to react to it."
Matt Nagy knows that one win could be the spark
Sometimes all it takes is one big victory to turn a season around. Granted, the Bears are running out of time and their chances of getting one this week look grim. They must go into Philadelphia, one of the most hostile sports cities in the country to face a team that has pretty much owned them for the past several years now. They're coming off a blowout win over Buffalo and still have one of the best offensive lines in football. It just feels like an unfavorable matchup for the Bears given how their quarterback is playing.
Then again, the NFL is probably the most unpredictable league in professional sports.
Maybe, just maybe the Bears can summon their best effort and escape there with a win. Nagy isn't under any illusions. He knows it'll take a herculean effort and 60 minutes of near-flawless football to pull off. Something the team hasn't proven capable of lately. Then again, his steadfast belief that it can happen is spurred on by the steadiness of his players through these difficult times.
