Matt Eberflus Reveals The Two Positions He Thinks Improved Most

The Chicago Bears endured their teardown phase last season. It resulted in an ugly 3-14 record, their worst winning percentage since the dawn of the Super Bowl era. With another off-season in the books, GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus know the expectations will be higher this year. Fans envision more wins in 2023 and overall improvement across the board from several position groups. It is only natural since the team invested millions of dollars and loads of draft picks into the roster.

Two weeks of training camp are in the books. By now, Eberflus has a good idea of where the roster is at and where it could end up going in the coming months. He appeared on The Green Light podcast with Kyle Long and Chris Long. Kyle asked a straightforward question. What position does Eberflus think has improved the most from last year? His answer was telling.

“I’ll probably do two. I would say the front seven on defense is totally changed, and I think that matters. Honestly, when you’re trying to affect the quarterback and you’re trying to do a good job against the run game. I really think the D-line is going to be a little bit of a change because we have (Andrew) Billings in there, we have Justin Jones, we got two young rookies that we signed (Gervon Dexter and Zacch Pickens), and then we signed Yannick (Ngakoue) and got a couple of other guys. Obviously, we got (DeMarcus) Walker and (Rasheem) Green. Those guys at defensive end. In the middle of our defense, I think we’re stronger there. We got Tremaine Edmunds, you know, from Buffalo. And then T.J. Edwards, who’s a real good, instinctive linebacker. So we feel good about those guys.”

Eberflus wasn’t done.

Next, he shifted the focus to the offensive side, where he couldn’t hide his excitement at the array of weapons Poles assembled and the progress of the Bears’ young quarterback.

“Offensively, probably what’s going to be the biggest change you’ll see is the chemistry between Justin Fields and the skill that we have. You know, the tight ends…we have three tight ends you probably wouldn’t find better in the league. You get Cole (Kmet), Bobby (Tonyan), and now Marcedes (Lewis), the Big Dog, in there. So that’s some good dudes. Then you got the receiving corps. The addition of D.J. (Moore), (Darnell) Mooney, (Chase) Claypool…those are three good skill sets we really have. So the continuity of that between Justin and the skill set we have is growing and improving as we go.”

Matt Eberflus isn’t shy about his excitement.

It is pretty clear he is optimistic about where the Bears are at. His confidence in the defensive line has grown substantially since last season. Much of it stems from adding proven pass rushers like Ngakoue and Walker while stacking the defensive tackle spots with big athletes like Billings and Dexter. Throw two Pro Bowl-caliber linebackers into the mix and the front seven won’t be a pushover like last year. As for the offense, it was interesting how Eberflus honed in on the tight ends first. It’s hard to deny how much he loves what that trio brings to the table.

The Bears already extended Kmet after a strong 2022 season with over 500 yards and seven touchdowns. He remains a big factor in camp. Tonyan is a dependable pass-catcher who can stretch the seam and create matchups in the red zone. Lewis might be old at 39, but he’s still one of the best blocking tight ends in the league. Matt Eberflus knows those guys could change games if the Bears’ wide receivers force defenses to roll coverages to the perimeter. Everything in place complements each other. When that happens, teams start winning games.