Matt Nagy takes blame for Chiefs' offensive 'failure' in loss to Titans

ByAdam Teicher ESPN logo
Tuesday, January 9, 2018

New Chicago Bears coach Matt Nagy said he called every offensive play for the Kansas City Chiefs in the second half of Saturday's playoff loss to the Tennessee Titans.

"There are scenarios when I wish I would have made some different choices with the playcall," Nagy said Tuesday as he was introduced as the new head coach in Chicago.

"For me, that was a failure in my book. ... I felt terrible for our team, for our organization. We put in a lot of good work."

Nagy served as the Chiefs' offensive coordinator until taking the Bears' job Monday.

The Chiefs, after scoring 21 points in the first half, were shut out afterward and wound up losing 22-21 in the wild-card round. The Chiefs had three first downs and 61 yards in the second half.

When asked after the game who called the offensive plays, Chiefs coach Andy Reid took the blame.

"[Nagy] called the good ones, and I called the bad ones," Reid said. "We'll keep it at that."

Running back Kareem Hunt, the NFL's leading rusher during the regular season, had just five carries in the second half. The Chiefs led until the Titans took the lead with six minutes remaining.

Tight end Travis Kelce, who was having a big game, left for good late in the first half because of a concussion. The Chiefs struggled without him, but Nagy assumed the blame.

"You've got to adapt," said

Nagy said he would call the offensive plays for the Bears. He indicated he would improve as a playcaller because of his failure in the second half against the Titans.

"That's a learning situation for me," Nagy said. "I'll grow from it, and I'll learn from it. I promise you that. I'll use that as a strength here for me with the Chicago Bears."

Bears general manager Ryan Pace said he had "mixed emotions" while watching Nagy's playcalling in the second half.

"But one of the things I love about Matt is his humility and willingness to come in and talk about that moment like he did" at the news conference, Pace said. "He owned it. 'Hey, guys, this is what happened, I was calling the plays, this is what I learned from that moment, and this is what I'm going to do better going forward.' I think that says a lot about him as a person."

ESPN's Jeff Dickerson contributed to this report.

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