‘Elite’ Shane Waldron gives Bears everything they need in OC despite Seahawks criticisms originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Success is often a product of opportunity.
For the Bears and new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, the opportunity to succeed together arrives at a pivotal moment in the franchise’s history. It’s a pairing — sources told NBC Sports Chicago that the Bears will hire Waldron as their next offensive coordinator — that came together in an offseason in which the stars aligned perfectly.
Waldron was only available because Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Pete Carroll surprisingly stepped down as head coach. Waldron had other options but chose to come to Chicago and embrace the challenge of elevated quarterback Justin Fields or developing presumptive No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams.
In Waldron, the Bears get a brilliant offensive mind from the Shanahan tree (Sean McVay branch). Waldron has worked for Bill Belichick, Mike Shanahan, McVay, and Carroll. He is adaptable and innovative, has play-called experience, and has worked with a number of different quarterbacks, including Kirk Cousins, Jared Goff, Russell Wilson, and Geno Smith.
After firing Luke Getsy, general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus wanted to bring in an offensive coordinator who was a good teacher, could create explosives, and knew how to tailor his attack to his personnel’s strengths.
A Shanahan disciple, Waldron uses the run game to stretch defenses horizontally and open up windows in the passing game with heavy play-action off it. The Seahawks offense was a top-15 unit in DVOA in 2021 and 2022 before tailoring off a touch this past season due to some rampant offensive line issues.
Some surface-level stats for Waldron’s offenses might appear to raise some red flags.
Over the past three seasons, the Seahawks have ranked 23rd in third-down conversion rate at 38.5 percent. That’s suboptimal. However, the Seahawks were second in the NFL in converting first…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/elite-shane-waldron-gives-bears-220456798.html
Author : NBC Sports Chicago
Publish date : 2024-01-22 22:04:56
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