5 more NFL head coaches on the chopping block after Brandon Staley fired
By John Buhler
3. Matt Eberflus has been better than last year, but last year was horrific
Matt Eberflus had been a dead man walking earlier this season, but the Chicago Bears have at least shown that they are not going down without a fight in his second year at the helm. I mean, they are only 5-8 on the season, but this was the worst team in the NFL only a season ago. The fact they own the Carolina Panthers' first-round pick because of the Bryce Young trade gives them elite leverage.
Unfortunately, I don't think the Bears' decision to replace a Matt at head coach and a Ryan at general manager is going to work out for them in the end. We may need to ride this out for one more season, but I cannot safely say that any marked improvement by the Bears will be good enough to give them an additional year. The thought of being able to draft Caleb Williams No. 1 overall is so very appealing.
The question is not what the Bears are going to do with the No. 1 overall pick by way of the Panthers' incompetence under new-ish owner David Tepper, but who is going to be making the decisions for them? All things equal, Ryan Poles gets to keep his job over Eberflus, which I wouldn't agree with, but here we are. I would say on a good day, it is about a 50-50 proposition that Eberflus will be returning.
I recognize that the Bears are better than they were a season ago, but they had been absolute dreck.