Mike Martz to the Bears

When it was reported that Mike Martz is becoming the new offensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears, 2 things went through my mind, 1. This PR disaster is finally over and 2. The worst month in sports just got a little more worse this year. When the Bears announced that Ron Turner and numerous other offensive coaches were being shown the door 27 days ago, the logical thought would be the Bears have a plan in place and will hire new assistants shortly. Not quite. Offensive coaches were paraded in and out of Halas Hall and no one was being hired, and one coach even picked Oakland over Chicago. Besides the PR hit the Bears took in making this move, it's also a move that just doesn't make sense on a number of levels.

The first and most glaring is that Martz' system doesn't fit the personnel the Bears have now. Martz' system is pass oriented and that's fine from the outside but he likes to keep the TE in to block and send the RB out on passing routes. Greg Olsen can't block, there's just no getting around that which means that Jay Cutler will undoubtedly be running for his life next season to avoid being sacked. The system also relies heavily on timing and running correct routes, something these young receivers haven't learned yet, which could make this transition even more difficult to get down. The last strategic reason is one that'll have to be seen when the season starts, but Mike Tice's blocking scheme may be different than what is needed for Martz' system to be successful.

Mike Martz is one of Lovie Smith's friends and this hire is likely one Smith wanted to make 27 days ago but had to convince Jerry Angelo and Cutler that it was the right one. Smith is taking a huge gamble on this hire because if he doesn't get this right, next year he'll likely be fired as will all the other coaches and front office personnel. This staff now has 4 coaches who are or were a head coach at one point in the NFL, if they can put their coaching egos aside, the brains are clearly there for the team to be successful. If it doesn't work out, I beg the Bears to have a better plan that doesn't result in losing coaches to black hole that is Oakland.