Here\u2019s what separates the two teams, and how the Bears can try to close the gap this offseason:<\/b>
\nATLANTA \u2014 First, the good news: the Bears can squint their eyes on Sunday and imagine themselves in next year\u2019s Super Bowl. No team in the NFL has followed a more similar path to the NFC champion Rams than the Bears, though they\u2019re a year behind.
The Bears drafted Mitch Trubisky No. 2 overall a year after the Rams took Jared Goff first. In the months that followed, each team named a dynamic young offensive coordinator their head coach. The Bears hired Matt Nagy a year after the Rams tapped Sean McVay. Both coaches bucked tradition, sitting players in the preseason in the name of health. They brought defensive gurus with them, and let them run the show. Their general managers were aggressive in trades.
Teams tried to find the next McVay this offseason, too. On Thursday, Bears tight end Trey Burton pointed to 35-year-old Rams quarterbacks coach Zac Taylor, who will become the Bengals\u2019 head coach after Sunday\u2019s Super Bowl. The Packers hired 39-year-old play-caller Matt LaFleur to be their head coach, too, The Cardinals hired 39-year-old former Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury, while the Browns named former interim offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens, 44, their new head coach.
\u201cI think McVay, I think (Eagles coach) Doug Pederson, I think Nagy, they\u2019re the new breed of coaches,\u201d Burton said Thursday. \u201cYou\u2019re getting guys who know how to work with young adults, guys who are just getting into the league, and, for the most part, grooming young quarterbacks. They know how to shape, they know how to mold these guys.\u201d
The Bears beat the Rams in December.| Associated Press
Now, the bad news: what separates the Rams and Bears might very well be the reason why McVay\u2019s troops practiced Thursday and the Bears spent their third week at home.
Here\u2019s what separates the two teams, and how the Bears can try to close the gap this offseason:
Only 33, McVay employs a defensive coordinator, Wade Phillips, who is more than twice his age. The two have different personalities \u2014 Phillips is more relaxed \u2014 and experience levels. It works.
\u201cJust based on the inexperience I do have, you feel so fortunate to be surrounded with guys like Wade Phillips,\u201d McVay said this week. \u201cYou can\u2019t put into words how important he\u2019s been.\u201d
The same could have been said of Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio \u2014 until he left to become the Broncos head coach.
With only a year\u2019s experience as a coordinator, will Fangio\u2019s replacement, Chuck Pagano, fill the role of sage defensive guru? Will Pagano\u2019s head coaching experience help or hinder Nagy as he navigates through his second season? The dynamic will be compelling to watch.
Nagy never really figured out the rhythm of his run game, finishing 27th in the league with 4.1 yards per carry. The Rams were third, with 4.9.
Todd Gurley\u2019s NFC title game no-show notwithstanding \u2014 he had four carries, leading many to wonder about his knee\u2019s health \u2014 he dominated for most of the season. Only Saquon Barkley had more averaged more than Gurley\u2019s 4.9 yards per carry while also running more than his 256 attempts. No one in the league ran for more touchdowns than Gurley\u2019s 17.
Almost as impressive, though, was how the Rams ran with Gurley out. They signed veteran C. J. Anderson on Dec. 18. He ran for 167 yards five days later, and has totaled 466 yards on 82 carries in his four games since.
The lesson: a running game identity, and attitude, can transcend even the most dominant rushers. The Bears might look to upgrade from Jordan Howard or have another player join him in the backfield. They know, though, that their rushing issues can\u2019t be solved by one player.
They\u2019ll need better blocking \u2014 and, yes, a more willing play-caller.
Blame Nickell Robey-Coleman \u2014 a decade from now, fans will remember the Rams\u2019 pass-interference-flag-that-wasn\u2019t more than the way the NFC title game ended.
Greg Zuerlein made an astounding 57-yard field goal to beat the Saints in overtime. He kicked four in the game, including a 48-yarder with 15 seconds left to force overtime.
That came after he slipped on a turf-covered metal plate at halftime of the game, hurting his plant foot. It ached, but \u201cnot enough to stop from playing,\u201d Zuerlein said.
The injury has bothered him since \u2014 Zuerlein did not practice Thursday, but is expected to kick Friday.
\u201cWe\u2019re right on track,\u201d McVay said.
Had the Bears\u2019 Cody Parkey made his 43-yarder against the Eagles, the Bears might still be alive. They won\u2019t be able to replace him with someone as accomplished as \u201cLegatron\u201d this offseason, but focusing on a strong-legged kicker for the elements is a good place to start.<\/p>\n