LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — After another poor performance from his unit, offensive coordinator Shane Waldron heard pointed words from his head coach.
This message didn't come from Bears head coach Matt Eberflus. Instead, it came last November and served as a warning sign of what Chicago would eventually experience with Waldron.
“We have to maximize our people and have to make sure that we’re putting them in the best positions for them to contribute,” then-Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said in the aftermath of his team's 31-13 loss to the 49ers last Nov. 23.
“Making sure we’re choosing the best routes for the guys. We have unique talents, and we’ve got to make sure we’re maximizing that. I feel like we’re not. I feel like we’re not seeing stuff.”
A couple months later, it was Carroll’s endorsement of Waldron to Eberflus that helped lead the Bears to appoint Waldron as their new offensive coordinator after he guided the Seahawks' unit for three seasons.
Nearly one year after Carroll’s candid comments in Seattle, Waldron is repeating the same mistakes in Chicago.
The Bears (4-4) rank 19th in scoring and 28th in total offense through Week 9. Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, has had mixed results. At the root of Chicago’s offensive problems is Waldron, who hasn't maximized the talent at his disposal.
The Bears ranked first in the NFL in rushing in 2022, when they ran for a franchise-record 3,012 yards, and ranked second in rushing in 2023. Chicago’s rushing offense ranks 23rd with 112.5 rushing yards per game in the team's 4-4 start this season. Lead running back D’Andre Swift, whom the Bears signed to a three-year, $24-million deal in March, is averaging a career-low 4.0 yards per carry. Despite adding the explosive Swift and returning four of five starters on the offensive line, the Bears' ground game hasn't moved as hoped under Waldron's watch.
Top receiver DJ Moore has run routes at an average depth of target of 9.8 yards, which is close to his career-low. Moore's average depth of target was 14 yards in 2022 with the Panthers and 11.9 yards with the Bears in 2023, when he had 96 catches for 1,364 yards and eight touchdowns.
Moore is a dynamic downfield threat who hasn’t been utilized as such this season. He has 37 receptions in eight games, with 25 of those going for fewer than 12 yards. Moore is averaging 10.1 yards per reception, which is easily the lowest figure of his seven-year NFL career.
Meanwhile, six-time Pro Bowl receiver Keenan Allen has been misused downfield. Allen’s average depth of target is 11.2 yards in the six games he has played for Chicago. That's by far the highest route depth of his 12-year career.
In acquiring Allen from the Chargers in an offseason trade, the Bears' vision was for Allen to be a reliable target for Williams who could help the team consistently move the chains. Waldron has reduced Allen’s reliability and strength by making him a deep threat at 32 years old.
Then there’s Bears tight end Cole Kmet, who in 2023 established himself as one of the game’s better players at his position. Kmet is a weapon for Williams, hauling in 27 of 30 targets this season, but he has barely been utilized in recent weeks.
Kmet wasn't targeted at all in the Bears' ugly 29-9 loss to the Cardinals on Sunday. A week prior, Kmet had one reception on that lone target in Chicago's 18-15 loss at Washington.
With that as context, it's worth remembering what Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba told CHGO back in February after being asked about Waldron landing in Chicago.
“This is live?" Smith-Njigba said after a long pause. “I'm playing. Good luck to y'all. I mean, he’s a great person. He’s a great offensive coordinator. I was very lucky to have him my first year. Learned a lot from him.”
Smith-Njigba had 63 receptions for 628 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games in 2023, his rookie season and Waldron's last in Seattle. Now in his second year with the Seahawks and without Waldron, Smith-Njigba has 50 catches for 568 yards and three scores in nine games.
Smith-Njigba's average depth of target has shifted from 6.1 yards with Waldron in 2023 to 9.3 yards in 2024 while his drop percentage has been cut in half. New Seahawks offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb has unlocked Smith-Njigba in a way Waldron didn't.
The Seahawks rank 14th in scoring, ninth in total offense and first in passing offense this season. They were 17th in scoring, 21st in total offense and 14th in passing offense under Waldron's direction in 2023.
Waldron has also had a number of high-profile costly play calls that have contributed to Bears losses. In the Bears' 21-16 loss to the Colts on Sept. 22, Waldron called for an ill-fated speed option on fourth-and-goal from the Indianapolis 1-yard line. It resulted in a 12-yard loss and a missed scoring opportunity in a five-point defeat.
In the fourth quarter of the Bears' 18-15 loss to the Commanders on Oct. 27, Waldron called for a hand-off to offensive lineman Doug Kramer, who had lined up as a fullback, with Chicago facing third-and-goal from Washington's 1-yard line. Kramer had never carried the ball in the NFL before. Williams and Kramer didn't execute the hand-off, and the Bears lost the fumble in another one-score game.
In both situations, Waldron could’ve turned to powerful running back Roschon Johnson, but he prioritized a more creative play call over a simple one that catered to his players’ strengths.
Williams has shouldered blame for the Bears' woes, noting that he needs to perform better and make a better effort to provide input to Waldron. Before being drafted by the Bears, Williams had played three seasons under head coach/offensive play-caller Lincoln Riley at Oklahoma and then USC. There was genuine trust between Williams and Riley.
Waldron hasn’t instilled a scheme that uplifts the strengths of Williams or those around him on this Bears offense.
Despite the Bears’ problems on offense, Eberflus currently has no plan to remove Waldron from his role as play-caller.
"We're going to look inward and making sure that we do a good job of utilizing our talents, our skill and really a general basic execution of our plan,” Eberflus said.
Sound familiar? Once again, Waldron is to blame for a poorly coordinated offense.
Emma's Prediction (5-3): Bears 23, Patriots 16
This game is just what the scuffling Bears need. The Patriots are arguably the NFL’s worst team. It’s a get-right game on both sides of the football for the Bears, who will take advantage.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.