Bears OC believes offense will swimsuit whoever finally ends up at QB

LAKE FOREST, Sick. — Even earlier than realizing which path the Chicago Bears will go at quarterback in 2024, new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron is assured his scheme will match Justin Fields, a rookie or whoever would possibly find yourself because the staff’s QB this offseason.

“Yeah, I completely consider that,” Waldron mentioned throughout his introductory press convention on Thursday. “I feel prior to now experiences with completely different quarterbacks, completely different expertise ranges, whether or not I used to be within the coordinator function or in a task as a place coach, I felt that manner.

“I felt completely different quarterbacks have been in a position to step foot into the system, have the ability to study it rapidly, and that begins with us with the ability to educate it in a superb and environment friendly method the place they perceive it.”

Waldron, 44, was employed by the Bears in January after spending three seasons as Seattle’s offensive coordinator. In response to coach Matt Eberflus, the staff interviewed a complete of 14 candidates for his or her offensive and defensive coordinator openings (with 9 identified interviews for his or her OC opening), and Waldron was the one coach the Bears interviewed twice.

When requested about how a lot of his interview centered round his plans for Fields or a university quarterback, Waldron expressed that his plans for the Bears offense revolved round “adaptability.” As soon as the scheme is put in, Waldron mentioned Chicago will likely be ready “regulate the scheme to the participant’s talent set,” together with the quarterback.

The distinctive spot the Bears are in with the primary and ninth picks within the draft was interesting to Waldron, who drew curiosity from New Orleans, New England and Las Vegas for his or her offensive coordinator openings.

“It is not going to occur too typically,” Waldron mentioned of the Bears’ two first-round picks contained in the High 10. “That is that 12 months, after which additionally the core, the group of gamers that’s already in place on offense, together with the quarterback that performed at a excessive stage and that displayed the flexibility to win soccer video games and make performs.”

NFL guidelines stop coaches from working with gamers till Part One in all offseason exercises, which start in April. Waldron mentioned he has “exchanged messages” with Fields and has reached out to different Bears gamers to start establishing relationships.

The offensive coordinator declined to supply specifics when requested whether or not he has evaluated Fields and spoke in generalities when requested for his preliminary impressions on USC quarterback Caleb Williams, the consensus high prospect within the draft.

“My impression of a variety of these quarterbacks, all the faculty quarterbacks, was, what an unbelievable school season we simply got here off of with these guys making a few of these dynamic performs down the stretch, whether or not it was main into the championship video games or the bowl video games main as much as that, the common season,” Waldron mentioned. “There’s a number of quarterbacks which have already carried out on the best stage, in large video games and clearly he is [Williams] certainly one of them.”

Throughout an look on The St. Brown Brothers podcast on Wednesday, Fields expressed a want for readability on his NFL future, whether or not in Chicago or on one other staff if the Bears select to commerce him.

“I really feel like the most important factor with all of this occurring proper now’s I simply need it to be over,” Fields mentioned. “Simply let me know if I’ll be traded. Let me know if I am staying.”

And for the report, Fields mentioned “after all I wish to keep.”