Chaos of the Matt Nagy Era
Darnell Mooney sees organization as a key to why the Bears could be better on offense than many of the analysts think.
In a podcast interview with Redline Radio, described Matt Eberlus' team as entirely organized and the Matt Nagy regime, well, not so much.
"It's night and day, man," Mooney said on the podcast about Bears practices now. "It's smooth. I mean everything. Everybody knows where to go, when to do something, what's the expectation, what's the standard. You know what you're getting out of the next day. It's not coming in and just like, 'uh, what we got going on?'
"So everybody knows exactly what the coaches want."
Mooney illustrated it by talking about last year and how he now is a team leader
"It's smooth. I mean everything. Everybody knows where to go, when to do something, what's the expectation, what's the standard. You know what you're getting out of the next day."
"Yeah, I definitely feel like I've got to be more vocal," he said. "Last year a lot of the guys in there were, like, asking the questions, even when I first got here (in 2020) like, asking the questions. I'm like, 'Bro, I just got here. (Like) I know everything. Like, I know the playbook but I'm trying to figure out just as much as you."
The key to the more stable situation seems to be Matt Eberflus, who seems focused but takes more of a delegating approach.
"He's a chill guy. He's a chill," Mooney said in the interview. "He has the standard. He may let you know the tone but honestly talking to him he's not like, rah-rah, like that type.
"He sets the standard, he sets what everybody's mindset is. He's really like head coach. He's doest really get like in everybody's face. I like how hes's handling the situation. You need somebody that's in charge of, like, the organization part of it. You can't have the organization part and trying to do one thing. It will be a toll on that person, and I've see that, as well."
The result is Eberflus letting offensive coordinator Luke Getsy coach without interference.
This may run contrary to what some wanted when it was thought the Bears would hire an offensive-side coach like Matt Nagy was, but Eberflus is allowing his underlings to do their jobs and he coaches the coaches.
"I like how he just lets Luke do his thing," Mooney said. "He's not a part of it. He's in our meetings and stuff, and he understands the playbook, he knows what's going on on both sides but he kind of stays out of the way from my viewpoint."
Mooney had plenty to say in the interview about his first two years in the league, buying two JUGS machines and not just one so that he could practice receiving in his hometown or in Chicago. And he added the reported trip he and other receivers are going to make to Atlanta to work out with Justin Fields might be somewhere else.
"We may change plans," Mooney said. "You know, people coming with cameras and stuff. We may just stay here we may go to florida. We don't know yet. We have to get that plan together."
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