It's not what Matt Nagy hoped for, but Chicago Bears defensive end Khalil Mack was completely shut out in his team's road loss to the Los Angeles Rams, failing to record a sack or even a tackle. Mack, 28, is a four-time Pro-Bowler and former Defensive Player of the Year, but was thoroughly stopped by the Rams in Week 11.
Bears second-year head coach Matt Nagy isn't concerned with his stud defensive lineman, calling Mack's performance unsurprising for stars as it opens the game up for surrounding players.
Per Mark Potash in the Chicago Sun-Times:
“You see that with a lot of superstars,” Nagy said. “You can go back to last year with [Rams defensive tackle] Aaron Donald, when he played us, there wasn’t any [two tackles, one quarterback hit].
‘”Sometimes that happens, but it opens it up for other guys. [Mack] was a part of the first play of the game with the fumble. He was right there with Eddie Jackson, ripping the ball out.
“‘Khalil, he doesn’t have to change anything he’s doing,” Nagy said. “He’s a pretty good player, and he understands in this scheme it’s cyclical, and we’re just in that right now. Teams are going to double him every single game, and it just gives opportunities to other guys.”
Nagy has been under fire for his lack of concern over the quarterback position, with third-year gunslinger Mitchell Trubisky faltering in the spotlight in what was supposed to be a season of growth and maturity. However, when it comes to Bears pass rusher Mack, Sunday's dud is likely more anomaly than regular occurrence.
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