Getty Head coach Matt Nagy of the Chicago Bears has yet to reveal who will be calling plays if OC Bill Lazor is out Week 15.
The Chicago Bears have been one of the teams hit hardest by the COVID-19 outbreak that is currently running rampant through the NFL heading into Week 15.
As of December 19, the Bears have 12 players and their top three coordinators, offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, defensive coordinator Sean Desai and special teams coordinator Chris Tabor, all on the COVID-19/reserve list.
In the event one or all three coordinators aren’t cleared for Chicago’s Monday night divisional matchup against the Minnesota Vikings, the team revealed the team’s plan for their replacements.
ALL the latest Bears news straight to your inbox! Subscribe to the Heavy on Bears newsletter here!
Bears Name Potential Coaching Substitutions for Week 15 vs Minnesota
Bears senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine will take over defensive play-calling duties for Desai, passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo will fill the shoes of OC Lazor and assistant special teams coach Brian Ginn will step in as special teams coordinator in place of Tabor, the team announced on December 18.
All three coordinators tested positive for COVID-19, and all three are vaccinated, so there’s a possibility one or all of them could return against Minnesota on December 20. They have all been working remotely this week, which just isn’t the same as being there in person.
“I’ve been testing every day,” Desai said on December 17. “I’ve just been following the protocols that obviously the NFL and our organization have been giving us. So, I’ve been testing every day and you kind of go through that. There are some rules which I’m not totally in all the details of it but I get all the results and pretty much there are numbers, benchmarks, negative tests, all that stuff. There’s a combination. A lot of things that can allow me to test back in. I’m hopeful that I’m going to be able to test back in by Monday.”
Lazor admitted to being frustrated by the limitations of the team’s current situation.
“I am. I’ve been trying to get some of the work. Someone had asked earlier about staying plugged in. Some of the work is a lot easier to do when you’re in the building together. So it’s a little bit frustrating in the organization of practice and getting cards ready and the scout team ready, and if an adjustment gets made, to test it out so that everyone gets it on the staff. You can go down the hallway and do it a lot easier than you can when you’re not in the building. I’d say it’s frustrating, but there’s not much I can do about it.”
Unfortunately, that’s the reality for most professional sports teams currently trying to play through the pandemic.
Follow the Heavy on Bears Facebook page, where you can weigh in on all the latest Bears-related breaking news, rumors, content and more!
Revenge Game for DeFilippo?
This will be an opportunity for a revenge game of sorts for DeFilippo, particularly if he gets to serve as primary play caller.
DeFilippo served as OC for the Vikings during the 2018 season, which was Kirk Cousins’ first with the team. He was fired by Minnesota after 13 games, and he wound up in Chicago a season later as QBs coach, in 2020.
Nagy hasn’t revealed whether it will be DeFilippo or himself call the play store Monday night, but he could have a big say in how the Bears attack the Vikes.
“I’m sure we’ll work together and just kind of see what we want to do there,” Nagy said about DeFilippo, per Sports Illustrated. “I think that we’ve had a good plan all week long with how we’ve gone about it and what we’ve discussed. No matter who’s calling it, we feel like the plan’s gonna be good.”
READ NEXT: Bears Sign Former Arena League Standout QB