MEET THE ‘NEW’ BOSS
Eberflus sports makeover — much like his team — heading into make-or-break season
ORLANDO, Fla. — Matt Eberflus looks like a new man.
His hair, masterminded by Bears barber Lawrence Funk, is cropped tight. His beard, long lobbied for by wife Kelly, has grown in nicely — the itchiness went away after about a week of growth. His clothes are more stylish than your average coach, too, the result of input from his wife and two daughters. At the NFL’s annual meetings Tuesday, Eberflus walked into a conference room at 7:45 a.m. wearing a navy woven shirt and white jeans and carrying a Louis Vuitton backpack.
It’s easy to try to compare Eberflus’ makeover to that of the Bears, who hold the first and ninth picks in next month’s draft. That’s a far cry from two years ago, when Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles tore the roster down to the studs.
“We didn’t go into it blind with hope — ‘This is going to be easy,’ ” he said Tuesday. “We knew exactly where the lay of the land was.
“Now we’re in Year 3, and we’re starting to add the talent because we got the [salary] cap right. Ryan and his group have done an outstanding job, and we’re in a good spot.”
The pressure to perform remains. At midseason last year, Eberflus was on the hottest seat in the NFL. That figures to be the case in Year 3, even with a rookie quarterback — likely USC’s Caleb Williams — taking every snap.
The last two Bears coaches have fallen victim to a rookie quarterback. John Fox was fired after one year of Mitch Trubisky, Matt Nagy after a season of Justin Fields.
Eberflus is 10-24 as the Bears’ coach, with half of those wins coming in the last eight games last season.
It was Poles’ decision to keep Eberflus. The coach was asked whether he needed to prove anything this year to keep his loyalty.
“Him and I are like brothers,” Eberflus said. “We have been for several years now, even before we got the job. We’re continuing to build that relationship and we’re going to be in lock-step in everything we do in terms of player acquisition, how we operate in terms of that process and our on-the-field process.”
Chairman George McCaskey said that, after Poles decided to keep Eberflus, they had a discussion about what needed to be done to make the Bears successful. Eberflus overhauled his offensive staff, replacing everyone but the offensive line and tight ends coaches.
“I’ve been very impressed with the communication and the interplay among [president and CEO Kevin Warren], Ryan and Matt,” McCaskey said. “Very optimistic about those relationships going forward.”
The Bears have “had some tough seasons — and we’re looking for better days ahead,” McCaskey said.
Exactly what constitutes “better,” he wouldn’t say. The Bears are operating like a team that wants to win now. In the last five months, they’ve added defensive end Montez Sweat, receiver Keenan Allen and running back D’Andre Swift — combined Pro Bowls: eight — and re-signed cornerback Jaylon Johnson.
A rookie quarterback won’t be a crutch. Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud proved last year that a first-year player can succeed in the postseason — he was only the eighth rookie quarterback to win a playoff start since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.
“Our situation is our situation,” Eberflus said. “Everything is unique, every building is unique in the NFL. Every situation is unique. And we’re excited about working with our situation and making it the best we can.”
McCaskey said he couldn’t recall a time when he felt quite the same momentum inside Halas Hall.
“When you’re in that situation, you’ve got to make hay,” he said.
He wouldn’t specify how many wins he expects in 2024. But he’ll know success when — or if — he sees it.
“We’re always looking for progress,” he said. “I think we saw that last season, especially the second half of last season. And we just want to see that continue.”