Two Coordinators Still in Protocol

Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai has returned from the COVID-19 protocol and Matt Nagy is calling plays against Minnesota.
USA Today

The Bears will have one of their three coordinators back for the Monday Night Football game against the Minnesota Vikings.

The team on Monday morning announced defensive coordinator Sean Desai had cleared the NFL's COVID-19 protocol and would be available to call the defensive scheme. 

Previously, coach Matt Nagy had designated senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine to perform the duty if Desai was unavailable. 

Coaches needed two negative COVID-19 tests in a day to make it out of the protocol.

The Bears still have both special teams coordinator Chris Tabor and offensive coordinator Bill Lazor in the protocol. Tabor is slated to be replaced by assistant Brian Ginn while quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator John DeFilippo will take over as offensive coordinator.

Nagy told WBBM-AM 780 that he will call plays with assistance from DeFilippo. Nagy last called plays this season when they faced Cleveland in Week 3, a 26-6 loss when Justin Fields started for the first time at quarterback.

There has been no player return from the COVID-19 list since they announced nose tackle Eddie Goldman would be available. He was on the list for less than a week. 

Backup tackle Elijah Wilkinson also came off the list last week after he had been on it for almost three weeks. 

Needless to say, it's been a week of total disruption for the Bears with coaches and players missing due to the illness.

"Whether it’s game day or the day of practice, or whether it’s in meetings, there’s some things that you gotta work through," Nagy said. "But when you keep a mindset of understanding that we’re not the only team in the NFL that’s going through this, or really any sports league—there’s other teams that are going through this. When you keep that mindset you understand it. You try to stay as positive as you can."

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.