Early Friday evening, Bears General Manager Ryan Pace, signed former Indianapolis Colts head coach, Chuck Pagano to replace Vic Fangio as their new defensive coordinator.
The 58-year-old Pagano has 16 years of NFL coaching experience, getting his start as a defensive backs coach for the Browns (2001-2004) and Raiders (2005-2006). Pagano then continued as a defensive backs coach from 2008-2010 for the Baltimore Ravens, where he eventually became their defensive coordinator in 2011.
As the defensive play caller for the Ravens, Baltimore finished second in total defense and went all the way to the AFC Championship Game where they lost to the New England Patriots 23-20.
In 2012, Pagano became the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts and led the team to three straight playoff appearances, including another AFC Championship Game in 2014. Pagano finished his tenure in Indianapolis with a 53-43 regular season record and became the second coach in NFL history to record 11 wins in each of his first three seasons with a team.
With Fangio moving on to be the head coach in Denver, Pagano appears to be a more than worthy replacement with his deep coaching pedigree and ability to build strong relationships with his players.
“We always fight for him.” T.Y. Hilton said regarding Pagano. “He’s a players’ coach and you dream of having a coach like that. He’s special.”
On top of his experience and being a players’ coach, Pagano inherits an extremely talented defense, and hopefully, he can pick up where Fangio left off.
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