Matt Eberflus by the numbers:

24 comments

1. Is it fair to evaluate the WL record from last year if the whole purpose was roster eval and rebuild?

   I think it’s fair to beat up the staff on this season. But last year was a total tank and develop goal. Build for the offseason. This year is similar, but expectations were higher. Competitive in games which has been the case most weeks. Failing to close out teams is the reason for the next offseason leap.

   Don’t expect a big coaching purge.

2. Last week was his and Getsy’s last chance. Being in the hunt and decent odds afterwards to make it, would have been enough to probably keep Eberflus at least. But now new HC/OC/DC and depending what they want to do of say keep Justin and build around him, then end of next year pick a rookie or extend would be made. Or outright trade this offseason, will be known March 13th like last year.

3. I’m starting to get the feeling, considering how the locker room hasn’t fallen apart, that everyone is staying.

4. I just hope that if the Bears go QB in the draft they don’t make the mistake of keeping a lame duck coach. The collapses, game management, discipline issues, random staff firings, are all likely enough to warrant a change on their own even with the improvement on D, but if we go QB, the need to get on schedule with a coach and staff for that QB. You use one of the most valuable assets in football to pick the most valuable positions in football, you need to 100% cater the staff around that.

5. Wait, aren’t we supposed to evaluate the coaches based on “First 17 games” “Last 17 games” splits?

   And if there’s improvement shown there we stick with them?

6. He’s almost there!

7. Genuinely asking, why doesn’t Eberflus get the same benefit of doubt Fields gets with regards to the “overall lack of talent”

   He became the head coach in the very beginning of a total rebuild, coaching the youngest roster in the NFL last year and still top-10 youngest this year. Young players are developing, especially on the defensive side.

   He’s not perfect, or without mistakes but I fully expect him to be back next year and they likely fired Getsy but I’m still not sure that’s a given either.

8. Black Monday can’t get here fast enough

9. Everybody better prepare for him to stay and a new OC/QB pairing will be here next year.

   That seems the most likely outcome at this point.

   Edit: not cheering for this, jettison all 3 imo, but I think Flus somehow keeps his job

10. I think this coaching staff is bad.

    But these same numbers apply to the GM too. This team is still devoid of talent.

11. Quotes around accomplished is my favorite part of this depressing post.

12. If they hold a press conference to fire Flus at 1PM they need to hold a press conference at 1:15 to introduce Harbaugh as the new HC. This fanbase can’t go through another BS HC search.

13. This off-season will tell us if the Bears truly have changed under Kevin Warren. In the past, I would be mostly convinced they were going to keep Flus and be satisfied with mediocrity as they always have been.

14. > People still defending this coaching staff…how?

    I mean, who’s really holding the banner and standing beside him today?

    I thought he had some merits piling up in his favor going into Cleveland, but another brutal collapse is really hard to stomach if you’re a fan or if you’re the GM or team president.

15. As if I didn’t need another reason to hate Eberflus: He told the DUMBEST thing to the sidelines reporter:

    “We are going to respond, not react.”

    Just wow. This moron thinks that is an intelligent thing to say. That gives me a window into his terrible coaching.

16. Get Harbaugh and he can bring back Fangio. I’d have a lot less concerns about the coaching staff if that happened.

17. If Tonyan had caught the pass the Bears would have won the game.

    If Fields had made the first down marker on 4th down the Bears probably would have won.

    That is how games are won/lost in the NFL. The Bears are close and that is what leadership is looking at. They aren’t looking to scrap it all because of the outcome, doing so would be dumb.

    If the Bears had won the games questioned above, what changes in the make up of their team? Nothing.

18. 

    Let the human sacrifices begin!

    Eberflus, Getsy, Phillips, McCaskey (all of em), Fields, and Whitehair…

    Let us break the curse of the mustache of Ditka!

19. * Had 2 Assistant Coaches let go during the season.

20. Preach

    When Eberflus was hired, he had a plan to develop Justin Fields. It was a huge storyline because it was controversial to hire a defensive head coach to pair with a high draft pick QB. He waxed poetic about how he was going to help Justin read defenses and understand how the defenses were attacking him. That didn’t materialize in year 1. Lack of talent on the roster was clearly a problem. We all know that, and it’s undeniable. But if there was some kind of fundamental flaw with Justin or with Getsy, Eberflus failed to identify it. Eberflus doubled down on Fields and Getsy. They passed on CJ Stroud. They could fired Getsy and hired Slowik. They could have done anything, but they did absolutely nothing. They pinned all the problems on a lack of talent on the roster. Poles made some good moves. Improved the line, improved receiver. Now, they are still failing, and once again, they are blaming a lack of talent.

    This time, it’s the QBs fault. Maybe they’re right. It certainly feels like Justin has had a fair enough chance to erase all doubt, and he hasn’t done that. Under different circumstances, the Bears probably aren’t moving on from Fields just yet. But the thing that bothers me the most is that Eberflus isn’t being held accountable for not developing Fields when he was brought here to help do that. And now, because of this incredibly fortunate opportunity, the Bears are going to give Eberflus another QB to develop. In what world does that make sense? He told us that he could help develop Fields. He did not. Part of that is on Fields and on Getsy, but he is over both of those people. Eberflus is responsible for that.

    He is not the defensive coordinator. It’s great that he is good at coordinating a defense. The defense still blew the game. They’ve blown lots of games. The Browns defense played good enough to win the game. The Bears defense played good for 3 and a half quarters. Yes, the offense should have made plays. Eberflus is the head coach. The offensive problems are his fault, too. It’s going to be a huge mistake if they give another developmental QB to Eberflus. They have an amazing opportunity for a shot at a QB that is potentially better than Fields. The timing of it is kind of perfect but they have to have a coach that can take advantage of this opportunity and develop the new QB to his full potential. Eberflus has shown nothing to indicate that he is capable of that. The only thing he has done is show that he can’t.

21. So can he please be fired after the season ends?

22. Honestly after watching the joke show yet again I am right back on the Harbaugh train

23. We need a new coaching staff for sure. There is no way around it. Especially if we are turning the page at QB.

    Regarding the new staff and QB, I’m up for whatever the new coaching staff wants. Keep Fields. Draft Williams. Draft Maye. Draft Daniels. Whatever.

    A name we have heard around here bounced around a lot is Ben Johnson, the OC of the Lions who would probably come in to be the HC and offensive play caller. But he would still have an OC. Here’s where things get interesting. I heard someone putting up a weird stat about the highest a former Indiana Hoosier QB has ever been drafted and they mentioned a guy drafted 168th in 1980. Being cheeky, I pointed out that Antwaan Randle El was drafted much higher and much more recently. Even though he was a WR in the NFL, he was a former Hoosier QB. He’s also a Chicagoan as you all probably know. My curiosity got the best of me so I did a “where are they now” bit of research on him and found that he is currently the WR coach for… The Detroit Lions!

    So, let’s look at a scenario where Ben Johnson comes in and anoints Randle El as his OC. His experience at QB in college along with his experience as a WR in a very good Pittsburgh offense (Bruce Arians, no?) and being an understudy with Ben Johnson makes him a pretty compelling choice. He happens to be a native son, but that’s another story. Who would they want as QB? I could see cases for keeping Fields, or going with any of the three other potential draft prospects.

    In his four games against the Lions (one of them was TERRIBLE… at least passing), Fields averaged 13.5 completions on 24.25 attempts for a completion % of 55.7%. He had 6.37 YPA and a 2.5 TD/Int ratio. He also averaged 110.25 yards rushing and with 6 rushing TDs in four games, averaged another 0.75 TD/game. He was also sacked 15 times which is 3.75 sacks/game. Fumble numbers weren’t at my fingertips otherwise I would have included them. They probably saw both the best and worst of Fields. He had one game with 75 yards passing and another one with 4 TDs (2 passing and 2 rushing) with a 147 yards on the ground. I’m genuinely not trying to juice him up or trash him, just lay out the basic stats. I think he had 3 good (not spectacular) performances against them with one terrible performance. I just wonder what their opinion would be. Randle El was a similar style QB in college to Fields, Williams and Daniels… and I would argue Roethlisberger was similar style-wise to Fields as well.

24. Pre season predictions on this sub had us at 6-8 wins, which will realistically happen.. but they did it in terrible fashion.