This isn’t working for Nate Davis or the Chicago Bears.
And while this isn’t to say that Davis can’t turn it around, I am struggling to envision a path to the Bears to maintain the status quo along their offensive line and improve significantly by continuing to run the same five guys into the trenches to protect rookie quarterback Caleb Williams and block for a stable of running backs that includes D’Andre Swift, Khalil Herbert, Travis Homer, and (maybe one day) Roschon Johnson.
If you are a fan who is reading this a๊nd is frustrated by the Nate Davis si🗹tuation, just know that you are not alone. The Bears sound pretty peeved, too.
During an appearance on The Athletic’s “Scoop City” podcast with Dianna Russini, Bears reporter Adam Hoge said the Bears are “frustrated” with Davis — and seemingly have been for a while:
“Since training camp started, it’s been a disaster. Nate Davis is probably not a huge national story, but locally, it’s been a big story for the last two years. He doesn’t like to practice. The Bears are frustrated with him not practicing. And I think he was going to lose that starting job at right guard to Ryan Bates, but Ryan Bates got hurt. And last week, actually, Ryan Bates out-snapped Nate Davis in the opener in a rotation, but then Ryan Bates suffered another injury this week in practice and he’s now on IR. So Nate Davis is out there by default.”
Oof. That is tough. It sounds like the Bears are at the end of their rope with the Nate Davis experience, but aren’t sure where to turn. Good thing I have a reputation as an “idea guy” around here.
Here’s what the Bears should do with Nate Davis…
In the clip above, Adam Hoge opines the Bears have no one they can insert into the lineup in place of Nate Davis. I’d disagree with that notion because Matt Pryor looked good during his moments starting in the preseason. Or maybe he just looked good enough for us to throw his name into this conversation. In any case, Chicago’s offensive line needs a shakeup. And the Bears, as a franchise, need to send a message to their well-compensated starting right guard that a lack of production on the field will merit removal from the starting lineup — no matter how much you get paid.
Cutting him would be extreme. But sometimes, taking extreme measures to send a message to the other 52 guys on the roster is something that needs to be done. Last year, we saw the Bears trade disgruntled wide receiver Chase Claypool for pennies on the dollar (compared to what they sent away to get him in the first place). For me, the message the organization was trying to send about playing and working together came across loud a🍌nd clear. Maybe it is time to do that again, even if it would cost the Bears to lose $1,397,059 in cap space .
I can’t stop thinking about how Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin showed us the blueprint of what it looks like to be accountable as the CEO of a football team. Maybe Bears Head Coach Matt Eberflus should ta😼ke notes. Because getting an offseason makeover and positioning yourself to be the cool, player-friendly coach ca🦄n take someone only so far.
Eberflus put Nate Davis on notice this summer when he said players could lose their jobs due to injury. Perhaps it is time to circle back and follow up on those words. Otherwise, players could see Eberflus’ summer stance as an empty promise. And if that happens, then it sets up potential problems for a head coach trying to handle a locker room. Bears fans have seen what it looks like when there is no accountability from the head coach. None of us want to experience that again.
