The Chicago Bears seemed to move on from quarterback Nick Foles quickly after acquiring him in 2020 to back up Mitch Trubisky.
He went from sitting on the bench to seeing action pretty fast with the Bears.
Foles came in for Trubisky during Week 3 in a come-from-behind victory for the Bears.
The play by him in that game landed him the starting spot.
He went from backup to starter by Week 4 of the 2020 NFL season.
But he would soon fall from grace with Matt Nagy.
The team would acquire quarterbacks, Andy Dalton and Justin Fields, for the 2021 season.
While fans loved the moves by the Bears, the reason might be deeper than most know.
Story On Foles Being A Critic Of Nagy’s Coaching Skills
A story of his comments on Nagy’s play-calling ability goes back to 2020.
Brian Griese would reveal something during the Bears game against the Los Angeles Rams regarding Foles and Nagy.
He would say Foles would get play calls from Nagy that he knew wouldn’t work.
Brian Griese just said that Nick Foles told the ESPN crew that sometimes Nagy sends in a play call and Foles already knows it won't work because he won't have enough time after the snap. That's something.
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) October 27, 2020
The comments would lead to Nagy being questioned about this after the game.
Nagy would tell reporters to ask Foles about what he meant when he talked to Griese before the game.
Matt Nagy's response: "We've never had that conversation… I don't know. You'll have [ask Foles]… Nick and I have a pretty good relationship and he hasn't said that. I'm sure he'll explain what he meant by that."
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) October 27, 2020
Foles would say it was a miscommunication between him and Griese.
Foles just said that he was trying to tell Griese that he and Nagy have a back-and-forth about what plays to run vs. pressure, when he might not have as much time. He said it wasn't anything to do with getting the play itself in quick. https://t.co/9AC849qhkf
— Patrick Finley (@patrickfinley) October 27, 2020
However, the seeds of doubt were already placed in Nagy’s mind.
Bears Release Trubisky, Draft Fields, Sign Dalton
The Bears had a busy offseason in 2021 acquiring quarterbacks.
While they kept Foles, they released Trubisky and added Dalton and Fields.
The moves would place him third on the depth chart, going into the 2021 season.
Some saw the Bears move to get Fields as one to build for the future.
However, they also got Dalton, who was coming off a season-ending injury when he was in Dallas.
Looking back, the moves seemed more like a way for Nagy to put Foles out of Chicago.
Video Of Foles In 2021 With The Bears Further Fuels Story Of Him And Nagy
The story of Foles and Nagy went away in 2020.
However, another incident would bring it right back up.
During a horrible game against the Browns, film shows Foles appearing to mouth that the offense just isn’t working
Nick Foles “offense just isn’t working” pic.twitter.com/do0Uj8HQco
— Cody B (@Cody_ChiBears) September 26, 2021
The story would serve as another strike against him with Nagy.
While the statement on the Bears offense is true, it probably wasn’t seen that way to Nagy.
So What’s The True Story On Foles And Nagy?
That is the million dollar question that many people have asked.
We may never know what the reason was for Nagy starting Dalton over Foles.
Foles had a good preseason, going 11 for 16 for 150 yards and two touchdowns.
Dalton would go 13 for 21 for 164 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Clearly Foles had the slight edge over Dalton in the preseason.
However, he would get snubbed and delegated to third-string.
With what we have heard in the past, it makes it safe to assume that Nagy never believed Foles’ misunderstanding story.
NEXT: Bears Have Acquired A New Veteran Backup Behind Justin Fields