Chicago Bears

Chicago Bears: Should John Fox Stay or Go In 2017?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Oct 20, 2016; Green Bay, WI, USA; Chicago Bears head coach John Fox watches team warm up before game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

John Fox is in unfamiliar territory with the Chicago Bears. He’s never had a losing season in the second year running a football team ever in his career.

That is about to change. With their loss up at Lambeau Field, the Bears have fallen to 1-6 on the season. Worse still Brian Hoyer joins Jay Cutler on the sideline with injury. It’s become harder to see this team ever winning another game the rest of the season. This of course has led to the inevitable speculation that it might be in the best interests of the franchise to consider moving on from Fox as head coach.

Naturally it’s sparked a heavy debate between experts and fans alike. Some believe the move would be far too rash in what is clearly a rebuilding year. Others think the team has performed far below its capabilities, and that falls at the feet of the head coach. Both sides have some merit to their arguments. So this article will examine each of them. Reasons for why he should be fired and why he should be retained.

Hopefully by the end of it some clarity will have been reached. Otherwise people may have to wait until the final nine games have been played.

Oct 20, 2016; Green Bay, WI, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Brian Hoyer (2) leaves the game with an injury in the second quarter during the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Reasons he should go:

Seems to get outcoached often

Often the best way to tell when a head coach is being clearly outmaneuvered during games is what happens in the second half of games. How are they are making adjustments? If this season is any indication, then it’s safe to say Fox has been thoroughly whipped in the chess game. To date the Bears have held a lead in the second half of five games this year. They are 1-4 in those games. Opposing quarterbacks have a 129.2 passer rating in the 4th quarter against them.

Conservative style

One of the trademark knocks on Fox throughout his career is he employs a style typical of a defensive head coach. He wants to minimize mistakes, run the football and play good defense. Most people call that conservative. It explains why he was committed to the idea of keeping Brian Hoyer as the starting quarterback given the veteran wasn’t turning it over. At the same time many argue Hoyer won just one game in five starts. Jay Cutler has six in 18.

Old

The saying goes that age is just a state of mind but not in the NFL. Age is a huge part of conversations when assessing players and coaches alike. It takes a certain amount of energy to head coach in pro football. That energy can often be sapped over time. Coaches who were animated in their early years can lose some of the juice as they get up in years. Fox will be 62-years old in 2017. The oldest head coach to ever with a championship in this league was 65. It’s a very rare feat.

Poorly manages injuries

At this point Bears fans can only laugh. The amount of injuries that have occurred during the Fox era in Chicago is incredible. Just this year the team lost their top two QBs, two of three top receivers, their two best offensive linemen, their best defensive linemen, top outside linebacker, and four top corners to injuries. Add in the fact that Fox has not been forthcoming on information regarding these injuries leads one to think he has a serious problem keeping players on the field.

No rings

It’s been hashed and re-hashed multiple times but won’t stop being true. The fact of the matter is Fox had two cracks at the Super Bowl and couldn’t close the deal. That speaks to a man who tends to never put his best foot forward when all the chips are down. Is that the kind of man the Bears really want running their team?

Oct 20, 2016; Green Bay, WI, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) fumbles the ball after getting sacked by Chicago Bears linebacker Leonard Floyd (94) in the third quarter at Lambeau Field. Floyd recovered the fumble for a touchdown. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Reasons he should stay:

Continuity

Yes the season is going poorly. Far worse than expectations predicted. At the same time it’s important to remember this is only Fox’s second season in charge. It’s hard to get a roster and schemes in place that fast and have success. Typically head coaches need about three years before true results are seen. Constantly changing head coaches can lead to stunted growth of players.

Experience

People need to understand that this isn’t the first rodeo for Fox. He’s been a head coach in the NFL since 2002. He has more experience at the job than the majority of other coaches active. He’s experienced lots of winning, but also plenty of down years. At the very least he has common sense and understands what is wrong with a team, and more importantly how to fix it.

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Connections

One of the most underestimated values of a head coach is not so much what he knows, but who he knows. Fox has proven to be among the best in football in terms of connections with coaches. That is a big reason why he’s constantly able to build such strong staffs as he did in Carolina and Denver. Remember that three of his former disciples are current head coaches as well (Adam Gase, Mike McCoy and Jack Del Rio).

Motivator

Criticism regarding his game awareness and play-not-to-lose approach are fair and warranted. At the same time it’s also obvious that Fox gets his players to play. That is not a cliche. He is a motivating head coach. Even in the toughest of circumstances he finds a way to get the roster he has to give an honest 100% effort in every football game.

Eye for talent

One does not get to two Super Bowls with two different teams without understanding what good football players look like. John Fox has proven that across his 14 years on the head set. During that time his teams have drafted some outstanding talents including potential Hall of Famers like Julius Peppers and Von Miller. The saying goes in the evaluation business that the eye gets better with age. So in this case Fox may have an edge.

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