The Chicago Bears will overhaul their offensive staff, firing offensive coordinator Luke Ghezzi, receivers coach Tyke Tolbert and quarterbacks coach Andrew Gianocco, while also hiring head coach Andrew Gianocco, ESPN reports. Matt Eberflus has chosen to stay on.
Poor Bears fans. Eberflus was the epitome of mediocrity during his two years with the Bears, leading them to a 10-24 record over two losing seasons. record Overall during his tenure.
Many of the Chicago faithful expected Eberflus to be fired and flocked to Twitter to voice their displeasure.
Luke Getzi Fall Guy means Everflus will remain. Another half-baked plan from the Bears.
They can never rip the Band-Aid off. Instead, just leave the same dirty thing hanging around for a while until it falls off.
— Ross Read (@RossRead) January 10, 2024
“After extensive consideration, the Chicago Bears have decided to recall head coach Matt Eberflus and OC Luke Getsy for the 2024 season.” pic.twitter.com/SBUlVg8gUU
— WindyCitySports (@windycitysp0rts) January 3, 2024
It wouldn't be surprising if the offensive line disappeared. Numerous Bears stars have publicly blamed coaching for the team's offensive struggles.
Quarterback Justin Fields told reporters in September that he felt like over-coaching had made him play too “robotic.” around NBC Sports. (Related: Pain: Chicago Bears suffer one of the most heartbreaking losses we've ever seen)
Star mogul DJ Moore similarly said, “At the end of the day, there's still work to do from the top down, from the coaches to us. I’m going to play the game I’ve been playing and do it the best way I can,” Moore said in September.
The decision is Retention Eberflus seems like a puzzling figure until you look at recent trends in Chicago's decision-making. As Carmen Vitali of Fox Sports points out, they opted to retain head coach John Fox in 2017 and name Mitch Trubisky as their new quarterback, but that year Fox was later fired. They made the same decision in 2021, keeping head coach Matt Nagy, re-designating Fields, and firing Nagy a year later. Here is a picture of the dysfunction.
2017 Bears: Keep Fox.Traded up to select Mitch Trubisky at No. 2
2018: Fire John Fox
2021 Bears: Keep Nagy.Traded up, drafted 11th pick for Justin Fields
2022 Bears: Fire Matt Nagy
2024 Bears: Keep Matt Eberflus.
???
— Carmen Vitali (@CarmieV) January 10, 2024
Now, with the No. 1 pick in hand and a talented quarterback class, the Bears have a big decision on the horizon. Will they perpetuate a pattern of inconsistent leadership and never allow a young quarterback to settle down with a stable head coach? My money is on acquiring Caleb Williams next year and firing Eberflus anyway.
