When the Bears dumped Marc Trestman three years ago after a 5-11 season, it sure seemed like things couldn’t get any worse.
Well, it didn’t get any better.
Under John Fox, the veteran turnaround expert, the Bears averaged 4.66 wins over the next three seasons.
For Fox, Chicago was his third stop as an NFL head coach, so he was quite familiar with the drill on introduction day — be enthusiastic but don’t oversell it.
Here are some of the things Fox told reporters:
— On the heels of quarterback whisperer Trestman, Fox emphasized that running and stopping the run are “the essence of football.” He added: ”But I can promise you, you better be able to throw it. Because typically on third down, you’ve gotta throw it. And I can promise you, you better be able to defend the pass. So at the end of the day, to be successful, you better be consistent and good at both.”
— “I’ve always been of the thoughts of understate, overproduce,” Fox said. “I’ve never predicted records. If I could do that, I’d be at a racetrack somewhere.”
— About working with Jay Cutler, Fox made a famous blunder: “I feel good about whoever is at quarterback. I’m looking forward to getting to know Jake [sic]. He did text me, welcoming me to Chicago, and was very excited that I was coming here, which I thought was a nice move. I just reminded him that this game is only fun when we win — and we will — and that I was looking forward to getting to see him. I’m looking forward to seeing Jake face-to-face.”
— Finally, Fox said this about turning around the Bears’ losing ways: “I can’t make any promises, other than I’m going to give it everything I’ve got. And that [Lombardi] trophy is kind of lonely out there in the hallway.”
