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Shane Waldron’s introductory press conference at Halas Hall offered a few clues to detectives trying to solve the case as to what he will do as the Chicago Bears’ quarterback this offseason.
The team’s new offensive coordinator avoided responding to the most popular debate in Chicago sports; like Justin Fields avoiding the pocket while evading defenders. Waldron walked away from a question about evaluating Fields and danced around another question. USC quarterback Caleb WilliamsWho the Bears could select with the No. 1 pick this spring.
But a month after the Bears hired him to replace Luke Getsy, Waldron said Thursday he believes his offense can work no matter who is at quarterback.
General manager Ryan Poles said last month: adaptability will be a key component It was part of the offensive coordinator interviews, and coach Matt Eberflus emphasized it again on Thursday. introduces its new coordinators. Waldron believes he has that talent after working with multiple quarterbacks during his four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and three as offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks.
“A lot of the offensive conversation from a player’s perspective in general revolved around adjusting,” Waldron said. “What can you do with the different pieces of the puzzle depending on each year? Every year will be a different year in this league.
“We pride ourselves on having an offensive system; a group of coaches who can adapt and adjust the plan to the player’s skills. Our job is, firstly, to be great teachers, and secondly, to put children in the right and best position for their individual success in order to lead our team to success.”
Poles, Eberflus, Waldron and the rest of the Bears staff and coaches will travel to the NFL scouting team in Indianapolis next week to further their evaluations of draft prospects, including quarterbacks such as Williams, North Carolina’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels.
Asked what he thought of Williams, Waldron said college evaluations “are more general to see all these guys performing at a high level under national attention.” He noted that the Bears plan to begin the draft process on Thursday afternoon.
As for Fields, Waldron at one point touched on the Bears’ performance at quarterback, noting his “ability to be explosive, be a playmaker, and work outside of the program.”
But when asked specifically for his assessment of Fields, Waldron said his first weeks in Halas Hall were about improving his roster and building a foundation for his offense with new coaches. That group includes passing game coordinator Thomas Brown, quarterbacks coach Kerry Joseph and offensive line coach Chris Morgan, who has been promoted to play coordinator.
Waldron said the Bears are currently undergoing personnel evaluations, which “will allow us to start making some decisions at all points, not just at that point.”
Vague answers aside, Waldron of course expressed excitement about what’s in store for the Bears in the coming months.
He acknowledged that part of the appeal of coming to Chicago was having the No. 1 and No. 9 draft picks, saying that “it doesn’t happen very often.” He said like the relationship between the Poles and Eberflus, the current core players “including the point guard” are a draw.
“You walk through the building and you feel really excited about the direction this thing is going,” Waldron said.
While Waldron avoided answering about Fields and Williams, he was happy to talk about a different quarterback.
He called the experience of helping the Seahawks’ Geno Smith lead a comeback season in 2022 as “incredible.” Regardless of his situation, he noted that Smith was driven by a positive approach and focus, and said he could benefit from the experience of developing a working relationship.
“There was an unwavering mentality that he was the starting quarterback in the NFL, and I think that’s part of the thought process that every quarterback and every player in this league would have,” Waldron said. “And being lucky enough to work with a guy like that with that mentality and then being able to start developing that relationship, that rapport with him, where we can go into game day and feel like, ‘Hey, we’re totally on the same page with everything that’s going on,’ that’s something I’ll take with him from then on.” it was something.
Waldron also brings three seasons of experience as a play-caller with the Seahawks; That’s something Getsy didn’t have at the NFL level when the Bears hired him.
Waldron said the more he did this, the more natural it became, and the more comfortable and calm he became, knowing how to get information from other coaches in the moment and how to make the best split-second decision for the team.
“And then I realize: This is the NFL. Everybody’s good,” Waldron said. “There are defenses that are going to be great every week and they can make plays here and there and just being able to move on just like a player would. Hey, if you make a bad play, let’s move on to the next play. The next play might be the best of the game. But don’t let the previous playcall emotionally affect the next playcall.
“So the more you go over something, the more you do it, the more comfortable I feel in those scenarios.”
In a few months, Waldron should be more open to talking about the quarterback he’ll name these plays after.