The Chicago Bears apparently have concluded John Fox shouldn’t pay the ultimate price for their struggles over the last two seasons.
Chicago will retain Fox as head coach next season, NFL Media’s Ian Rappaport reported Sunday, citing those who know the Bears head coach well. Fox and many of his assistants will dodge the ax, despite winning just three games (with one remaining) in 2016 and six in 2015.
“… But in making the decision to stay the course, the Bears appear to be looking at more than box scores.
“The Bears have hung tough with teams in playoff contention, such as the Giants, Lions and Packers. They’ve done so with their fourth quarterback of the year, Matt Barkley …
“They have a whopping 19 players on injured reserve, including many starters.
“In addition, their 2016 draft class will be the foundation of the rebuild, a class that has drawn praise from opposing executives.”
Bears general manager Ryan Pace backed Fox on Sunday in an appearance on the Bears’ pregame show on WBBM-780 AM, according to The Chicago Sun-Times’ Patrick Finley.
“One thing I really wanna stress is in order for us to develop these younger players, you really need a coaching staff that’s on board with preparing them and playing them,” Pace said. “I think John’s done a good job in leading our team and his staff in assisting that development. I also think he’s done a good job with just instilling the right culture we want in the locker room. Those aren’t small things.”
For better or worse, Bears fans can look forward to the Fox-Pace regime’s third season. They should take solace in the fact Chicago has nowhere to go but up from its current point.
Thumbnail photo via Patrick Gorski/USA TODAY Sports Images
