Can Eberflus hire the right offensive staff to turn Bears around?
On Sunday evening in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Bears coach Matt Eberflus said what was brutally honest about his team’s passing attack.
“When you’re looking at the numbers ... we’re at the bottom third of the league,” Eberflus said. “I think 27th it was the last time. So obviously that needs to improve.”
The Bears did, indeed, finish as the 27th-ranked passing attack in the NFL. That was after adding star receiver DJ Moore and pairing him with quarterback Justin Fields.
Eberflus’ words Sunday seemed ominous. A few days later, the Bears fired offensive coordinator Luke Getsy and much of his staff on Wednesday morning. They also let go of quarterback coach Andrew Janocko, running backs coach Omar Young, receivers coach Tyke Tolbert and assistant tight ends coach Tim Zetts.
From the offensive staff, the Bears retained only offensive line coach Chris Morgan and tight ends coach Jim Dray.
The Bears will be looking for two new coordinators. They never filled the defensive coordinator position when Alan Williams resigned in September. Whomever the Bears hire as offensive coordinator will be tasked with fixing a struggling offense for a coach who could quickly be on the hot seat in Year 3. But that coach will also be moving forward with either Fields at quarterback or a highly coveted first-round draft pick.
“Our phones have been blowing up with people trying to contact us in different ways and all those things, and again, we’ll go through that process as we go,” Eberflus said.
Even if Eberflus is on the hot seat entering 2024, this is still an opportunity to be the offensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears. A lot of coaches would do anything for such an opportunity.
“You want to have somebody that’s a great teacher,” Eberflus said. “I think that’s important because he has to coach the coaches to coach the positions. And I think that’s the No. 1 trait of any great coach. You have to be able to have the innovation to really look at the players that you have and be able to help enhance and put those guys in position to succeed and to get explosives and to move the ball down the field.”
Eberflus’ job could depend on getting this hire right. Poles said he has “a lot of faith” in the Bears’ hiring process. He noted that he wants to find an “adaptable” coach.
Eberflus hired Getsy because he admired the Kyle Shanahan-style wide-zone offense. This time around, he didn’t commit to finding a coach in that particular mold again. In fact, the Bears seem more keen on finding a coordinator who has a plan for the specific players the Bears have.
Morgan, the offensive line coach, will remain on staff. That’s notable because Morgan worked under Shanahan several times, including with the Falcons team that reached the Super Bowl a few years back. But again, the Bears could be looking for whichever coordinator can figure out how best to use the Bears’ weapons.
“There were some teams that actually got better with a lot of changes,” Poles said. “If you don’t have the ability to adapt and adjust to the talent that you have at that position, it makes it really hard. So that’s going to be a part of our process.”
As for the defensive coordinator, Eberflus said he hasn’t decided if he will call the defensive plays next season. He did so for 16 of the 17 games this season. But most of the defensive staff will remain the same, so the Bears need to find someone who can work within Eberflus’ 4-3 scheme.