Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy sounds like he’s priming fans for a potential signing of Kareem Hunt.
The Bears coach told the media on Monday that he talked with Hunt recently.
“I talked to Kareem, completely wanting to know how he’s doing,” Nagy said at his season-ending press conference. “We had a good conversation. … The only thing I cared about when I talked to him was literally his personal life, how he’s doing. It was a good conversation. He sounded good. But that’s it. The other stuff, that’s not where it’s at. There’s more to it than the football, so we talked strictly on that.”
Nagy was the offensive coordinator in Kansas City during Hunt’s rookie season. They have a relationship that goes beyond football, which is why their conversation did not focus on that.
Hunt has not played since TMZ Sports published a video on Dec. 1 that showed Hunt getting physical with a woman during an incident at his apartment complex. He was cut by the Chiefs that day and placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List.
The second-year running back remains on the list as the league decides on his eventual discipline. They will consider three incidents when evaluating his case: Hunt was accused of attacking a man at a club in January; he was accused of punching a man in June; and the incident with the woman.
Nagy says he believes in second chances but not third chances. Maybe if it were just one incident, that would be a second chance situation. But the three accusations seem to indicate a pattern for the running back.
Whatever the case, Bears GM Ryan Pace doesn’t want anyone jumping the gun.
“We’re not even there yet,” Pace said. “I mean, I know what he is as a player obviously from watching. Matt knows more about him as a person. We’re not even close to that point.”
