The Bear’s Den, January 13, 2018

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

BEARRRSSSS

Biggs: Matt Nagy makes more big moves as defensive coordinator Vic Fangio stays - Chicago Tribune - Bears have to think feel like they potentially have the best for both sides of the ball now after defensive coordinator Vic Fangio agreed to return with a three-year contract Friday, four days after Matt Nagy was hired as head coach.

Haugh: Brainy Bears bring back Vic Fangio as Matt Nagy off to good start - Chicago Tribune - In a span of five frenetic days, the Bears decisively hired a head coach and three coordinators, all four highly respected men considered dynamic coaches with sharp minds — Matt Nagy, Vic Fangio, Mark Helfrich and Chris Tabor.

Biggs: Super Bowl dreamin’? Could keeping Vic Fangio pay off like Buddy Ryan move did? - Chicago Tribune - Bears defensive players implored owner George Halas to keep defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan before he fired Neill Armstrong 36 seasons ago, and the rest is history.

Potash: Return of DC Vic Fangio another big win for new Bears coach Matt Nagy - Chicago Sun-Times - He is the first defensive coordinator to be retained by a new Bears coach since Buddy Ryan was inherited by Mike Ditka — at George Halas’ behest.

Finley: Looking for leadership in the Bears' Matt Nagy - Chicago Sun-Times - Matt Nagy knows offense, but the most important question of his Bears tenure will boil down to three words: Can he lead?

Jahns: Rams or Reid? Defining expectations for new Bears coach Matt Nagy - Chicago Sun-Times - The Rams are merely a starting point. Andy Reid is the standard that Matt Nagy should be held to.

Hoge & Jahns Podcast: What should you make of new Bears coach Matt Nagy? - Chicago Sun-Times - In episode 144 of their podcast, the Chicago Sun-Times' Adam L. Jahns and WGN Radio's Adam Hoge offer their thoughts on new Bears coach Matt Nagy.

LeGere: Chicago Bears rehire defensive coordinator Vic Fangio - Daily Herald - Chicago Bears new head coach Matt Nagy has already taken giant strides toward improving a mediocre offense and has made the strongest move possible in preserving a Top 10 defense by rehiring coordinator Vic Fangio.

Mullin: Expect heavy tight-end usage; hiring process gave Nagy an edge - NBC Sports Chicago - Expect tight ends to receive plenty of attention in Matt Nagy's new Bears offense. That and more as John "Moon" Mullin empties out his notebook from a wild week.

Stankevitz: Vic Fangio’s return gives the Bears’ defense the best chance to be great in 2018 - NBC Sports Chicago - With the reported return of Vic Fangio, head coach Matt Nagy has given the Bears' defense the best chance to be great in 2018.

Mullin: Vic Fangio re-signing confirms different kind of 'aggressive' in Bears organization being built under GM Ryan Pace - NBC Sports Chicago - Bringing back Vic Fangio says some interesting things about the Bears and the franchise's direction.

Edholm: Chicago Bears retain defensive coordinator Vic Fangio - Pro Football Weekly - New head coach Matt Nagy convinced Fangio to stick around

Mayer: Bears hire Mike Furrey as receivers coach - ChicagoBears.com - The Bears continued to fill out new head coach Matt Nagy’s staff Friday, hiring former NFL player Mike Furrey as receivers coach.

Mayer: Why do Bears draft last among 5-11 teams? - ChicagoBears.com - Senior writer Larry Mayer discusses why the Bears draft last among four teams that finished 5-11, coaches from John Fox's staff who have joined other teams and the last time the Bears had a top-10 pick in the draft for four straight years.

Mayer: Fangio 'very happy' to return as defensive coordinator - ChicagoBears.com - Vic Fangio, the architect of a Bears defense that has shown marked improvement the past few years, will return to coordinate the unit under new head coach Matt Nagy.

Cox: Bears get help for defensive line in latest CBS Sports NFL Mock Draft - Bears Wire - The latest 2018 mock draft from CBS Sports has the Chicago Bears adding an impact player on the defensive line in the first round.

Cox: Bears bring back defensive coordinator Vic Fangio on 3-year deal - Bears Wire - The Chicago Bears were able to retain defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to run the defense under new head coach Matt Nagy.

Cox: Bears add 2 wide receivers in latest 4-round mock draft - Bears Wire - In the latest mock draft from Draft Wire, Luke Easterling has the Chicago Bears doubling down with two Power-5 conference wide receivers.

Emma: Bears Officially Announce Hiring Of Mark Helfrich, 2 Others - CBS Chicago - Chris Tabor is the new special teams coordinator, and Charles London is the running backs coach.

Emma: Bears Retain Vic Fangio As Defensive Coordinator - CBS Chicago - The Bears ranked ninth in scoring defense and 10th in total defense under Fangio's guidance in 2017.

Links: Vic Fangio To Return As Bears DC - Pro Football Rumors - It's a done deal. Vic Fangio has agreed to return as the Bears' defensive coordinator.

Bernstein: Bears Actually Doing It Right - CBS Chicago - For so long, Bears hirings have been clunky and weird, too often with an uncertain chain of command. Not now.

Limestone College Saints Athletics - 2017 Football Coaching Staff - Mike Furrey, who played eight seasons in the National Football League, is in his second season as the head football coach at Limestone College. Furrey, who became the second head coach in program history on May 11, 2016, holds a career coaching record of 16-17 over three full seasons.

Gandia: The Lowdown On Harry Hiestand & Charles London – Bears Barroom - At Matt Nagy’s job interview Ryan Pace asked him who he might bring to the Bears to fill his coaching staff. Pace told the media on Tuesday that he was extremely impressed with the response, “…these are the guys and these are the reasons why.” He added that Nagy told him that “this is how they will fit together in terms of creating good chemistry amongst the staff. How they balance each other out.”

Dickerson: Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio agrees to three-year deal with Chicago Bears - ESPN - The Chicago Bears have agreed to a new three-year deal with defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, a league source told ESPN on Friday.

Tarsitano: Vic Fangio expected to return as Bears defensive coordinator - WGN-TV - New Bears head coach Matt Nagy appears to have all of his coordinator positions filled. According to the Chicago Tribune, Vic Fangio is expected to return as defensive coordinator after an agreement was reached Friday. The deal is believed to be three years in length.

Hughes: He’s Baaaaaaaaaack! - Da Bears Blog - And... it's nothing but a nice pic of Vic. SO... yeah, there's that.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Rosenthal: Top 25 free agents of 2018 - Quarterbacks top the board (for now) - NFL.com - Six quarterbacks made Gregg Rosenthal's list of the top 25 free agents in 2018, including all three Minnesota signal-callers (Case Keenum, Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater). Who else made the list?

UConn hires former Chicago Bears assistant John Dunn as offensive coordinator - ESPN - UConn has reached to the NFL to hire a new offensive coordinator -- John Dunn, a former Chicago Bears assistant coach. Dunn replaces Rhett Lashlee.

KNOW THY ENEMY

Reisman: Lions reportedly lose another defensive coach to the Bengals - Pride Of Detroit - Teryl Austin is bringing some reinforcements with him.

Reisman: Rumor - Only ‘cold feet’ could keep Matt Patricia from the Detroit Lions job - Pride Of Detroit - One NFL insider believes the Lions are the heavy favorite to land Patricia.

Reisman: If Matt Patricia is their preference, the Lions should wait for him - Pride Of Detroit - It’s worth the risk for the guy you want.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Duerrwaechter: A profile of the new Chicago Bears’ head coach - Windy City Gridiron - An in-depth look into the Bears’ latest hire at head coach, Matt Nagy.

Link: What Can Bears Fans Expect From Matt Nagy’s Offense? - Windy City Gridiron - Let’s take a look at how Matt Nagy likes to run his offense and how we can project that with the Bears personnel.

Wiltfong: Vic Fangio will return to the Bears - Windy City Gridiron - In a move that seemed rather unlikely just a few weeks ago, the Chicago Bears have convinced defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to sign a contract that will keep him in...

Zeglinski: Windy City Gridiron Nagy-Mania roundtable - Concerns - Windy City Gridiron - Part two of this spanning discussion has the WCG hive mind diving into questions of Nagy as Bears' head coach.

Sunderbruch: Bears Add Wide Receiver Coach - Windy City Gridiron - He’s a face familiar to Matt Nagy and apparently an all-around good guy.

Superfans: Can this be the best Chicago Bears’ coaching staff ever? - Windy City Gridiron - So what if they haven’t coached a game for our beloved Chicago Bears yet. So far we are loving what’s taking place at Halas Hall this week with head coach Matt Negy and his outstanding coaching...

FANPOSTS

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