The Senior Bowl kicked off Tuesday in Mobile, Ala., where NFL teams gathered to get a look and meet with some of the nation’s top prospects.
GM Ryan Poles, head coach Matt Eberflus and assistant GM Ian Cunningham were among those representing the Bears. But Chicago also had a man on the ground in offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, who’s serving as the head coach of the American team.
Getsy explained the benefit of coaching at the Senior Bowl, where he gets to work closely with players and interact with other coaches around the league.
“It’s a tremendous opportunity,” Getsy said, via ChicagoBears.com. “The exposure to the player is the main reason it’s awesome. But to be able to meet other coaches and kind of learn from them, and on top of that maybe give them something, that part of it’s the best.
“Any type of exposure like this is a great opportunity. Is it exactly the same [as being an NFL head coach]? No, but the structure, planning it all, putting it all together, all that stuff is really valuable for me.”
While Getsy will get the experience of serving as a head coach, it’s also an experience that’ll benefit the Bears in their pre-draft evaluation.
“That’s the most important reason why I’m here,” Getsy said. “I keep the main goal the main thing, and that’s the final way to get our team to be a better football team. And this gives you a great opportunity to dive into the type of men they are. We’re trying to build this organization with guys who love football, and so we get to find that out when you get to be so hands-on.”
Getsy gets a chance to work with every player on his American team, from meetings to on-field interactions. And it’s something that’ll benefit Poles and co. as they assemble their draft board.
“I’m in every meeting room,” Getsy said. “I’m going to every position, so I’m getting to see how guys interact, see how they learn. Then I get to come out here and I get to observe every position, too. I’m trying to take advantage of that and not just keep it in one area. I’m trying to get as much information on as many of these guys as possible.”
Getsy gets a chance to work with these players for three practices (Tuesday through Thursday) and during Saturday’s game, which will provide him with important information about potential Bears targets.
“That’s like the natural: Is this guy just a baller or not?” Getsy said. “You get to see the subtle movements. You get to see how they handle change, how fast they can learn something and then go out and perform it that quickly because that’s the world we live in. We can’t do the same thing every week; you’ve got to be able to adapt. So this is a really good opportunity.”
