Bears Fire Lovie Smith

[EmpireWF]

Would he have been gone if they were 1 and done in the playoffs, too?

The epitaph for Lovie Smith's tenure as head coach of the Bears could read, "He couldn't fix the offense."

For all the good things Smith did in his nine years in Chicago, his undoing was his inability to take care of the side of the ball in which he had no background.

The Bears fired Smith on Monday after a 10-6 season, Tribune sources have confirmed. They started 7-1 but fell apart down the stretch, mostly because they couldn't score.

Since Smith took over in 2004, the Bears have ranked higher than 23rd in offense only once. They have ranked 28th or lower four times.

Smith tried four offensive coordinators during his Bears career. His first thought was to run a similar offense to the one he was familiar with when he was defensive coordinator of the Rams, so he hired Terry Shea.

The Bears finished last in the league in offense behind quarterbacks Chad Hutchinson, Craig Krenzel, Jonathan Quinn and Rex Grossman, and Shea was dismissed after one season.

Smith then turned to Ron Turner for his second stint as Bears offensive coordinator. Turner lasted five years in what was the heyday for Smith's offense.

It was during this period that Smith's stubborn allegiance to Grossman became an issue. "Rex is our quarterback," he said over and over again.

Those days Smith often talked frequently about how the Bears "get off the bus running," and the team achieved its offensive identity by pounding the ball with Thomas Jones, then Cedric Benson and finally Matt Forte.

But after the Bears traded for Jay Cutler in 2009 and they still finished 23rd in offense and missed the playoffs, Turner was made the scapegoat and fired.

An extensive job search that included interest in Jeremy Bates, Rob Chudzinski and Tom Clements led the Bears back to Smith's old friend Mike Martz, for whom he had worked in St. Louis. Going from the conservative Turner to the aggressive Martz was quite a philosophical shift for Smith.

Martz's offense sputtered in 2010 but started to come on the next season. Then Cutler broke his thumb in the 10th game, and the team unraveled. The Bears lost five straight, and Martz was fired along with general manager Jerry Angelo, the man who brought Smith to Chicago.

Smith's next move was to go conservative again, this time by promoting offensive line coach Mike Tice. A first-time play caller, Tice made great use of new acquisition Brandon Marshall but struggled to find other reliable targets or to overcome protection issues.

The Bears finished 28th in offense.

The only time Smith enjoyed a fairly efficient offense was in 2006, when the offense ranked 15th in a season that ended in the Super Bowl.

Defensively, the Bears were on the other end of the spectrum under Smith. With perennial Pro Bowlers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs as the constants, Smith's defenses usually were among the best in the NFL.

Since 2004, the Bears defense ranks first in the league in takeaways, three-and-out drives forced and third-down percentage and is fourth in scoring defense.

Smith's defenders scored 34 touchdowns, which became a signature of the Bears' style of play.

It was Smith's defense that drove the Bears to their first Super Bowl appearance in 21 years after the 2006 season. Smith and Tony Dungy became the first two African-Americans to coach a Super Bowl team as the Bears took on the Colts.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...s-fire-coach-lovie-smith-2012,0,1783180.story

 

[1ke]

More than likely IMO.

Im sad, but i understand. A necessary break up.

Starting over tho. Lots of FAs on the team, so starting over.

 

[TeflonDonny]

Sad to see him go. He never had the support he really needed to get over the hump

 

[Leftwich]

Kind of a shocker but i kinda understand with the 7-1 start and 3-5 finish.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Had to make the playoffs and win one I thought, so this isn't a surprise for me. Smith should have no issue catching on as a DC somewhere, but could be in the mix for head coach.

 

[f16harm]

...remember that long thread here about 9mths ago after they traded (2) 3's for B.Marshall? "Our offense is going to be awesome now with a true #1 receiver"

He had a fine season in Chicago, imagine where their 28th ranked offense would have been without him, regardless, thanks for the picks.

 

[FirstTimer]

Thank God.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Well earned firing. He had to go.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

...remember that long thread here about 9mths ago after they traded (2) 3's for B.Marshall? "Our offense is going to be awesome now with a true #1 receiver"

He had a fine season in Chicago, imagine where their 28th ranked offense would have been without him, regardless, thanks for the picks.

Said it then, and i'll say it now.

That trade was an absolute STEAL for Miami.

 

[1ke]

Said it then, and i'll say it now.

That trade was an absolute STEAL for Miami.

How? 2 3rds for a probowl wr who has at least 4 more years of production left with a new more than likely offensive minded coach. Brandon had fantastic numbers even when he was doubled.

This shouldn't have anything to do with Brandon. It was time for Lovie.

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[Warner2BruceTD]

How? 2 3rds for a probowl wr who has at least 4 more years of production left with a new more than likely offensive minded coach. Brandon had fantastic numbers even when he was doubled.

This shouldn't have anything to do with Brandon. It was time for Lovie.

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I don't want to rehash my feelings on Marshall and derail the thread. He had a good year, so just because it was a great trade for Miami, doesn't mean it was a bad trade for the Bears. Sometimes, both sides 'win'.

And I agree, this has nothing to do with Lovie. I was just responding to f16harm.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

How? 2 3rds for a probowl wr who has at least 4 more years of production left with a new more than likely offensive minded coach. Brandon had fantastic numbers even when he was doubled.

This shouldn't have anything to do with Brandon. It was time for Lovie.

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They didn't need the head case with a rookie QB coming on board. The two third rounders could be used to add support on defense, or to draft offensive players to grow with Tannehill. I actually thought it was a smart decision for both teams.

 

[1ke]

I don't want to rehash my feelings on Marshall and derail the thread. He had a good year, so just because it was a great trade for Miami, doesn't mean it was a bad trade for the Bears. Sometimes, both sides 'win'.

And I agree, this has nothing to do with Lovie. I was just responding to f16harm.

Agreed. The trade was win win. I think steal is a bit much.

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[Cornelius]

Dammit.

 

[Sven Draconian]

As a Lions fan, I'm really happy about this move. They fired Lovie Smith because they could not find a QB. The Bears issue is that Jay Cutler sucks. He has a pretty solid supporting cast (Marshall, Forte and a great defense) and his numbers are average. They changed coordinators and philosophies. Their OL is weak and Cutler is 60% (or worse) passer that turns the ball over a ton. Getting rid of Lovie Smith isn't gong to change that.

 

[FirstTimer]

As a Lions fan, I'm really happy about this move. They fired Lovie Smith because they could not find a QB. The Bears issue is that Jay Cutler sucks. He has a pretty solid supporting cast (Marshall, Forte and a great defense) and his numbers are average. They changed coordinators and philosophies. Their OL is weak and Cutler is 60% (or worse) passer that turns the ball over a ton. Getting rid of Lovie Smith isn't gong to change that.

Another issue too is Lovie and his staff was consistently awful at player evaluation, especially on the offensive side of the ball. He just had no clue how to build a staff for a balanced team. Cutler needs to improve no doubt but the Bears need a guy who can build a complete team

 

[zack54attack]

About time... Tice is most likely gone too, thank god.

 

[Glenbino]

The Broncos swindled Chicago in that trade. Josh McDaniels just ruined it by being a terrible personnel guy.

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[dave]

I think in a year when so many teams fired coaches, the Bears should have given Lovie Smith one more year. The competition for coaches is going to be tough this spring, though, to be fair, the Chicago Bears and the Chicago market are among the most attractive landing spots in the NFL.

 

[Glenbino]

I think in a year when so many teams fired coaches, the Bears should have given Lovie Smith one more year. The competition for coaches is going to be tough this spring, though, to be fair, the Chicago Bears and the Chicago market are among the most attractive landing spots in the NFL.

Its still going to fail to attract a big name guy though because Angelo is still making the personnel calls.

I see then doing what they did when they hired Lovie and bringing in a defensive coordinator like Horton from the Cardinals.

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