Chicago Bears: Jay Rodgers may be the most underrated coach in the league

Perhaps the best thing that came out of the John Fox era was Jay Rodgers.

If I were running the Chicago Bears, I would consider making the move to lock up defensive line coach Jay Rodgers long term, before some other team swoops in and steals an absolute gem from the team.

When the Bears fired John Fox, Matt Nagy had to decide which coaches, if any, he wanted to retain from the old staff. He wisely chose to retain essentially the entire defensive staff for continuity — and it paid off, as the Bears defense had a banner year in 2018.

Following last season, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio left to become the head coach of the Denver Broncos and was replaced by Chuck Pagano. Again, the team had a choice to make — which assistants would the Bears retain from Fangio’s staff.

Perhaps the most important decision they made at that juncture was to retain defensive line coach Jay Rodgers who had joined the team when Fox was hired, reuniting with him from their time in Denver.

So what has he done since 2015? Well, he played an integral role in developing one of, if not the best defensive lines in the entire NFL. It started with the selection of Eddie Goldman in 2015 who is one of the games best, young interior defensive linemen. He’s also turned another young lineman, Bilal Nichols, into a force to be reckoned with, despite being taken in the fifth-round out of the University of Delaware.

Rodgers has also helped an already established lineman like Akiem Hicks elevate his game to an All-Pro level, maximizing his skill set and talent under Rodgers’ watch.

Perhaps his most impressive feat has been the work he has done with unheralded guys like Nick Williams, and Roy Robertson-Harris, the latter of whom would likely be a starter on many other teams.

His development of these young defensive linemen not only provides the Bears with tremendous depth to deal with injuries as they did on Sunday, but it also keeps a fresh pipeline of talent in the event the Bears need to shed more expensive contracts down the road.

He’s such a critical component of the coaching staff, and after Chuck Pagano, is probably the most important assistant coach on the staff. His demonstrated ability to work and develop players at every talent level and every level of their career are unquestioned. If the Bears want to keep that gravy train going, they should think about locking him up for a long time.