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Former Bears coach Matt Nagy offers incredible advice for Ben Johnson on how to succeed in Chicago

Former Bears coach Matt Nagy had some words of wisdom for Ben Johnson as he embarks on his first season in Chicago.
Bryan Perez|
Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Life came at former Bears coach Matt Nagy fast during his time in Chicago. After being hired to replace John Fox in 2018, Nagy burst onto the NFL scene as a first-time head coach, finishing his rookie season with a 12-4 record and winning the 2018 NFL Coach of the Year Award.

Nagy was on a rocket ship to superstardom in Chicago, but back-to-back 8-8 seasons followed by a 6-11 campaign in 2021 ended his tenure with the Bears after just four years and a 34-31 record.

Part of Nagy's undoing was his horrendous record against the Green Bay Packers. He went 1-7 against the Bears' biggest rival, an unacceptable result if a head coach in Chicago wants to keep their job.

Nagy's ups and downs with the Bears make him as qualified as anyone to offer Chicago's new head coach, Ben Johnson, some words of wisdom in the 'do as I say, not as I did' category.

Check out Matt Nagy's awesome advice to Johnson from Super Bowl Opening Night:

"Win, and beat the Packers," Nagy said.

Spot. On.

Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy greets his staff during warmups
Jon Durr-Imagn Images

Most Bears fans will acknowledge that Nagy was, for the most part, a fine head coach. Sure, he lost control of the wheel during the second half of his tenure with the team, but after experiencing the natural coaching disaster that was Matt Eberflus, Nagy would be welcomed back by Bears fans with open arms... maybe.

Fortunately, the Bears appear to have finally gotten it right in this years head coaching cycle with the hiring of Ben Johnson, who's long been considered the top coaching candidate in the NFL.

Johnson would be smart to take Nagy's advice, too: win games and beat the Packers. If he does those two things, he'll be around for a very long time.

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Bryan Perez
BRYAN PEREZ

Bryan Perez founded and operated Bears Talk, a Chicago sports blog. Prior to that, he covered the Bears for USA Today’s Bears Wire and NBC Sports Chicago. In addition to his Chicago Bears coverage, Perez is a respected member of NFL Draft media and was a past winner of The Huddle's Mock Draft competition. Bryan's past life includes time as a Northeast scout for the CFL's Ottawa Redblacks.

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