Chicago Bears fans aren’t sure where things stand with Matt Ebeflus. They know a few things about the head coach so far. He drastically turned around the defense over the final three months of last season, proving he remains one of the NFL’s better defensive play-callers. Additionally, he overcame a 0-4 start to finish 7-10, showcasing his ability to navigate a crisis. At the same time, the team has figured out how to elevate its passing game while also struggling to close out games in the 4th quarter.
That brings us to 2024. Eberflus overhauled the entire offensive staff, bringing in Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator. Chicago then selected quarterback Caleb Williams #1 overall, giving him a quarterback of his choosing. The fear many Bears fans have is that the team will decide to make a change if things don’t go well this year. It is a movie they’ve seen before with the two previous coaching regimes. Draft a young quarter and fire his head coach after one season. Would the Bears do it again?
Eberflus will be the one who determines that. There is some recent history to help paint the picture.
The former Bears head coach also went into his third season with a rookie quarterback. Chicago took Mitch Trubisky #2 overall. Most felt that if the Bears won enough games or Trubisky made legitimate progress as a passer, Fox would be safe for another season. Neither ended up happening. The team went 5-11, improving by only two games from the previous year. As for Trubisky, he had 2,193 yards, seven touchdowns, and seven interceptions with a 77.5 passer rating in 12 games. He eclipsed 200 yards in only three of those games.
As a result, Fox was fired and replaced with Matt Nagy. This it the same situation Matt Eberflus faces. It isn’t about making the playoffs. That isn’t the bar he has to clear. What he needs the Bears to show is competency and progress. Williams will start immediately. People expect him to struggle early, but he should improve as the season goes on. If that happens and the Bears produce a similar or slightly better record than last year, Eberflus should keep his job. If he gets the same results as Fox did, expecting a fourth season might be impossible.
