Bill Lazor, who last worked in the NFL in 2018 as the Bengals offensive coordinator, has been hired as the Bears new offensive coordinator for 2020. They got a guy. Was he their first choice? Probably not, but he does have plenty to offer.
Indeed, while Lazor, himself, has a LOT of relevant and intriguing coaching experience (dating back to his time as an offensive quality control coach for the Falcons in 2003), some of the connections he’s made over the years has also caught my attention – for a specific example … Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton.
Dalton put together his third Pro Bowl season while Lazor was his position coach in 2016. He completed a career-best 64.7 yards, threw for 4,206 yards, and posted a respectable 91.8 passer rating. And while Dalton played for Lazor from 2016-18, he completed 62.3 percent of his passes, averaged 3,364 yards and 21 touchdowns per year, while posting an 89.4 passer rating. Those numbers appear to be in line with his career marks (3,510 yards, 22.7 touchdowns, 87.5 rating), which is worth … something, I guess. But more important might be the relationship between the two, especially if the Bears go about creating competition at the quarterback position by acquiring Dalton this offseason.
And I’m not pulling that out of thin air, as there were rumors back during the season. However, when the Bengals benched Dalton before the trade deadline, we put a💫 pin in it and framed it as🐻 part of a quarterback shuffling t𝔉hat was worth watching. Of course, Dalton ultimately stayed putꦫ in Cincinnati.
Since then, Chicago has been predicted to be a 2020 landing spot for 🌳Dalton, who is also deemed a fit for the Bears. There are so many hurdles to clear before we even explore the idea of Lazor and Dalton reuniting in Chicago. For example, Dalton is still under contract with Cincinnati until further notice and reports of Lazor’s hiring just surfaced on Monday. 🔯But that connection is tooꦅ visible to not immediately highlight and share.
