Ian Rapoport dropped a bombshell on Saturday. The insider made it relatively clear that barring a complete breakdown over the final two weeks of the season; Matt Eberflus is expected to return as head coach of the Chicago Bears for a third season. This isn’t a huge surprise. The team has played much better over the second half of the season. After starting 0-4 in September, they’ve gone 6-5 since and should probably be 8-3 if not for a pair of rough 4th quarter collapses against Detroit and Cleveland. The defense has ascended to become one of the league’s best. It hasn’t been perfect, but the progress is hard to deny. The interesting part is what role team president Kevin Warren plays in this.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network added some notable details on that subject.
“The Bears have a new team president, Kevin Warren, who is a big-picture thinker and always talks about taking a methodical, organized and deliberate approach to all decisions. (Informatively, Warren was a young executive with a Rams team that went 5-11 and 4-12 in Dick Vermeil’s first two seasons, then won the Super Bowl in Year 3.) He’ll have a strong voice in whatever decisions are made and take a wholistic view of things once the season ends.”
Everybody thought Vermeil was washed up and out of his element in St. Louis those first two years. However, he’d taken over an awful team that desperately needed an overhaul. It took time for him to retool the roster and instill the necessary systems to get things off the ground. Then, in his third season, things came together. He found a new offensive coordinator in Mike Martz, traded for running back Marshall Faulk, and drafted wide receiver Tory Holt. The Rams exploded to 13-3 that year and won the Super Bowl. Patience had paid off.
Kevin Warren understands the value of stability.
While Eberflus hasn’t won as many games as Bears fans had hoped, it’s apparent the players involved understand and respect what he’s trying to build. They’ve bought into his philosophies, and it is starting to yield results. Warren is smart enough to understand that shifting to a new coach does not guarantee anything. If he gets the sense Eberflus has things pointed in the right direction, the wise decision is to let it play out. He also understands that the critical factor that got Vermeil over the hump in St. Louis was finding a quarterback. The Rams stumbled onto Kurt Warner a year prior. Fate elevated him to the starting job in 1999. The rest is history.
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Questions linger on whether Justin Fields is the guy Chicago needs to reach the next level. If a change at QB and offensive coordinator is what finally got Vermeil over the hump, perhaps the same will be true for Eberflus. Kevin Warren understands the value of the quarterback position as well as anybody. He was also in Minnesota for the acquisitions of Brett Favre and Kirk Cousins. Both helped turn the Vikings into contenders. Chicago holds the #1 pick in the upcoming draft. The time might be right to find a quarterback Eberflus and GM Ryan Poles believe can get them over the hump.
Justin Fields has been a leader during this resurgence. Dumping him would tear a chunk out of this team that would kill the momentum they have going into next season. A rookie QB will never match what Fields is on track to do next year. Poles has the cap space and quality draft picks on hand to fill the needs at WR, C, DT, OG and Edge with good to excellent talent. A Super Bowl contender is only a few smart moves away.
Check the stats (versus the Falcons), guys:
Velus Jones Jr: 1 carry for 2 yards; 2 returns for 54 yards
Trestan Ebner: out of the NFL
Roschon Johnson: 7 carries for 21 yards; TD; 3 targets 3 catches, 38 yards.
Tyler Scott: 5 targets, 2 catches, 15 yards
In the same game, Khalil Herbert had 18 carries for 124 yards, TD
DJ Moore had 13 targets 9 catches for 159 yards, TD
Both Herbert and Moore were drafted by an NFL GM other than Ryan Poles.
Let’s see how they do versus the Packers.
Thomas Gena is the guy who gets laid and still isnt happy. Nothing would ever make this nitwit satisfied. Boy Tom, your dad must have beat you down something fierce to have such low self esteem.
@Jammer8925 I’d like to see the Bears stick with JF1. Rather than use a draft pick for CW (I’m not a fan) or Maye, imo the needs are center, wide receiver, and an edge rusher to complement Sweat. I’d like to see Getsy replaced by someone that’s more innovative and aggressive.
CW is NOT the guy for the Bears. Keep JF1. Getsy needs to be replaced and the Bears use the draft / trades for center, wideout, and edge rusher. The team has been better the past several games. They’re a few players short of being VERY GOOD.