Hall Of Famer Reveals The Real Reason Bears Kept Matt Eberflus
One of the more hotly debated decisions of this Chicago Bears offseason came when it first began. As it became clearer that GM Ryan Poles would be making a change at quarterback, many fans felt he had a responsibility to do the same as head coach. The Bears needed an offensive specialist in charge—somebody who could forge a long-term relationship with whichever quarterback Poles took #1 overall. It made logical sense, given the success of such a strategy over the years. However, Poles ignored that advice. He felt Eberflus showed the steadiness and leadership that good head coaches requires last season, overcoming a 1-5 start to finish 7-10.
While that is true, it isn’t the primary reason the Bears kept him—at least not according to Hall of Fame pass rusher Dwight Freeney. He appeared on the Under Center podcast to discuss a range of topics. He had plenty to say when the subject of Eberflus came up. While it’s true he has the leadership qualities necessary for a head coach, Freeney thinks the decision to keep him was much more straightforward than that. It was because the Bears didn’t want to give up one of the league’s best defensive playcallers.
“He did a great job in Indianapolis, for sure. Hence why he became a head coach, because he did such a great job of creating so much pressure, stopping the run, he’s a total defensive coordinator in my mind…
…He throws so many things at you, but he’s solid in every area. From a coverage standpoint, there are some coordinators who just blitz, blitz and blitz, and that’s all they do. You start picking up the blitz and they can’t do anything else. I don’t think that’s what he does. His strength is everywhere…
…That’s why he’s so good and I think that’s probably why the Bears, the GMs and the owners decided to keep him. It’s because he’s a guy who doesn’t have any weaknesses when it comes to calling a defense and getting his defense ready.”
Matt Eberflus reminded everybody why he got hired in the first place.
It became clear the Bears’ defense was in a rough state by the middle of last September. Under former defensive coordinator Alan Williams, they allowed 30 or more points in seven games. Under Eberflus, that happened four times, and two of them were in the first two games he resumed playcalling against Kansas City and Denver. It happened twice over the final 13 games. Not only that, but the Bears allowed 17 or fewer points in six of their final eight games. Nobody can argue things didn’t change dramatically when Eberflus took over.
People should not underestimate the value of keeping that. We always talk about keeping an offensive head coach because it maintains stability for the quarterback. Why can’t it be the same on defense? If the Bears feel Matt Eberflus will always keep that side of the ball strong, thanks to his adept playcalling and motivational skills. If you were basically assured a top 15 defense every year thanks to his presence, that would be hard to give up. It means Poles is free to invest heavily on offense to keep the quarterback armed, knowing Eberflus can get more from less on defense.