New Bears coach Matt Nagy is young (40), and the latest coach to come with the label of “offensive mastermind.”
But before he can start drawing all his fancy Xs and Os, his first priority is to toughen the Bears up a bit, which means a more physical training camp (such that the new rules allow).
“The biggest thing going into this is just keeping a pulse of the players with regards to their health, their legs, their bodies,” Nagy said, via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. “We’re going to have a physical camp. There’s going to be some live action that goes on. The guys know that. We told them that going into the offseason and the summertime, that it’s going to be physical.”
The Bears will do most of the heavy work in the mornings, with an eye toward keeping players fresh. But they’ve changed a number of things this offseason (including the athletic training and strength staff), as they try to change the results of recent years.
“We’re a young team with a new offensive system going in,” General Manager Ryan Pace said. “And I do agree with the philosophy that sometimes you have to build callus, you have to build that up. So it will be a physical camp, and we welcome that. We’ll look forward to seeing that out there.”
Players seem to be welcoming the change (for now), primarily because they want to change the results after going 14-34 the last three years.