Bears Reportedly Looking At Ohio State's Ryan Day If Matt Nagy Is Fired
A Ryan Day and Justin Fields reunion in Chicago? It might be on the table in the near future, according to CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora.
The Bears are reportedly interested in poaching both the Ohio State head coach and his agent, Trace Armstrong, in a package deal. Day would become the head coach while Armstrong would take on a front office role.
That of course, would be contingent on the Bears firing Matt Nagy as head coach. Oddly enough, Armstrong is also the agent of Nagy. Nagy's job status appears to be in question on a game-by-game basis, and the 45-30 loss to the Packers on Sunday Night Football certainly doesn't help matters. Chicago sits at 4-9, in third place in the NFC North and well on the outside looking in on the NFL playoffs.
Day, 42, has gone 33-4 in three plus seasons at Ohio State, winning the Big Ten Championship twice. Ohio State was defeated 52-24 by Alabama in the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship. As part of an extension he signed in 2020, Day's buyout is $28.4 million. He's set to earn $7.6 million annually in 2022.
While Day has yet to address the report, Armstrong took to Twitter to squash any rumors.
"I have the utmost respect for the Chicago Bears organization, the McCaskey family and Ted Phillips," Armstrong wrote. "However, any assertion that I have engaged in conversations with them about joining the club in any capacity is simply not true."
Fields, 2021 first-round selection quarterback, took over as the starter in Week 3 after Andy Dalton was injured. On the surface, his numbers don't stand out. Fields is 2-7 as the starter, completing 57.6% of his passes for 1,585 yards, six touchdowns and 10 interceptions with a 27.3 QBR. Fields, known for his dual-threat ability, has also rushed for 385 yards on the ground and two scores.
The connection between Day and Fields dates back to their two very successful years together at Ohio State. Day was influential in plucking Fields away from Georgia in the transfer portal, a decision that paid off for the Buckeyes.
Fields went 20-2 as starter for Ohio State, completing 68.4% of his passes for 5,373 yards, 78 total touchdowns, nine interceptions and a 179.1 passer rating.
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