Tillman: Lovie's Consistency Paying Off
It's easy to call Lovie Smith stubborn. But if you do so, you have to admit his stubbornness is paying off this year.
While the Bears failed to make the playoffs the last three seasons, Lovie Smith refused to change the defense. And even after being handed a gun-slinging quarterback, he refused to change the offense. "We still get off the bus running," he said. And even when a new offensive coordinator known for throwing the ball all over the field came in and did exactly that, Lovie Smith made him change his philosophy and make it more in tune with what the Bears have done his whole tenure.
Cornerback Charles Tillman has been with the Bears the entire time Smith has and he insists Lovie has never changed the way he coaches the team.
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"I would say he and Coach Marinelli are probably two of the most consistent guys I have ever met," Tillman said on The Boers and Bernstein Show Tuesday. "They do everything the same. They are routine. They are the epitome of routine. You can guarantee Coach Marinelli is going to say the same thing every day. He never gets off schedule."
Tillman specifically talked about the Cover-2 defense, which Smith has always refused to deviate from.
"Coach Smith has said that since day one: 'This is who we are. This is the defense that we run.' And good years, bad years, we continued to run that same defense. He stuck to his guns and it's working out for us this year," Tillman said."
