Brother vs. Brother Says Matt Nagy

It seems as if Bears tackle Teven Jenkins in one week has gone from the outhouse to the penthouse in the eyes of Bears fans.

All it took was a little push. Except, the push was on him and then by him. And then on him.

Bears fans have been all over social media singing Jenkins' praises after he stood up for quarterback Justin Fields in Monday night's 17-9 loss to Minnesota.

On a scramble out of bounds, Fields took an unflagged hit along the sidelines.

Jenkins then got irritated with the Vikings for the way they treated his team's quarterback, got in their faces, got shoved by a Vikings player for his efforts, and then he pushed back. Of course, then he drew the inevitable penalty for the response rather than for being the aggressor—as usually happens when officials are late to see what actually transpired.

Immediately after the incident, teammate Germain Ifedi rewarded Jenkins by hollering at him and then shoving him first with two hands from the front and then a one-handed poke to the back for picking up the 15-yard penalty.

Those shoves of Jenkins by Ifedi did not sit well with Bears fans, even if his intent was more in line with how Bears coach Matt Nagy and Fields felt about it after the game.

I haven’t seen Ifedi that aggressive in his entire @ChicagoBears career. Try using that when you supposed to be blocking.
— Anthony Sramek (@anthonysramek) December 21, 2021

"I told him I like what he did there and I appreciate it but at the same time he's got to be smart," Fields said afterward. "But at the same time I definitely love the mindset and I love him sticking up for me.

"I think that's what we need more of, but I just told him I love it but just do it between the whistles."

If I was Teven Jenkins I would punch Ifedi in his damn mouth after the game.
— EJ 🇺🇸 (@itsmine49) December 21, 2021

Nagy on Wednesday said the entire situation has been hashed out between everyone with the team and no longer an issue.

"Those guys are just, they’ve moved on and we all have moved on too," Nagy said. "We've talked about learning, in those situations, to try to do everything we can to be better there, myself included."

And Ifedi getting pissed at Jenkins is why they are 4-9 https://t.co/S3wEtE9QLM
— Cole Gross (@CGross23) December 21, 2021

By that, Nagy referred to the unsportsmanlike conduct he drew in the game for being upset with Deon Bush's penalty for going low at blocker's legs.

While the Bears are said by Nagy to have put this to bed, there could be a wakeup call on the issue. That's because the Bears have to decide this week whether to keep Ifedi on the field because Larry Borom has returned from the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Would be very Bears to start Ifedi at RT in an already lost season over Borom. I will be insanely angry if it’s not Jenkins/Borom the remainder of the year at OTs
— Ryan James (@RJChicagoSports) December 22, 2021

Ifedi was the starter, went out with a knee injury after the Week 5 win over the Raiders, then returned last week after the injury and his own stint on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Yeah that was disappointing, Ifedi should be gone in the offseason.
— Agustin (@arod295) December 21, 2021

It's pretty apparent fans think Nagy should be going with the rookie as their starter now that the Bears are eliminated from a chance at the playoffs.

The ironic part of all this is Bears fans wanted Jenkins' head on a stick a week earlier for the four penalties committed and two sacks allowed during the loss to Green Bay, when he made his debut.

My only problem with Ifedi was that he overreacted by shoving a teammate. But that was all heat of the moment. Jenkins also is to blame for overreacting, also heat of the moment. But his judgement error cost us 15 at a critical moment. They probably worked it out that evening.
— Chuck Canning (@CanningChuck) December 22, 2021

Typically, Nagy sought to put a positive spin on it all. It probably does little good to treat it any other way now anyway, but trying to paint Ifedi and Jenkins as good buddies seemed a bit much.

"The way that (line coach) Juan (Castillo) has this O-line room and how tight they are, these guys are like brothers in there," Nagy said. "So you've got big brother and little brother, in my opinion, that’s what that was.

Thank you Jenkins!!!!!!!!!!
Screw you Ifedi
— RockyBear 54 (@RockyBear5154) December 21, 2021

"Germain is doing nothing but trying to tell him 'let's be smart. We understand where we're at.' And you've got Teven, who is trying to protect his quarterback. So it's all for a good cause, and when you're in those moments, sometimes that stuff happens. I just appreciate the protection that they all have for each other."

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