Bears wide receiver Darnell Mooney said “it’s night and day” with new head coach Matt Eberflus compared to the previous coaching regime under Matt Nagy.
Despite Eberflus’ reputation for being intense, Mooney said his new head coach is actually “a chill guy.” Someone who’s established clear expectations and standards for his team.
“He has the standard. He may let you know the tone. But, honestly, talking to him, he’s not rah-rah type of guy,” Mooney told Red Line Radio. “He sets the standard, he sets what everybody’s mindset is. He’s really like head coach. He’s not really in anybody’s face or anything. He lets the coaches coach. He’s not really doing much, just making sure everything’s organized.”
When Eberflus was introduced as Chicago’s head coach, one of the first things he said was that he wouldn’t be calling plays on defense, leaving that to defensive coordinator Alan Williams. Eberflus wanted to oversee all aspects of the team, not just the defense.
It seems like such a small thing, but it shows that Eberflus is committed to the team running efficiently. It’s something that’s stood out to Mooney, who saw the toll both running the offense and the team took on former head coach Matt Nagy.
“I like how he’s handling the situation. You need somebody who’s in charge of the organization part,” Mooney said of Eberflus. “You can’t have the organization part and try to do one thing. It’ll be a toll on that person and I’ve seen that, as well. But I like how he just lets (offensive coordinator) Luke (Getsy) just do his thing. He’s not a part of it. He’s in our meetings and stuff. He understands the playbook, he knows the playbook, he knows what’s going on on both sides. But he kind of stays out of the way.”
Eberflus has already drawn rave reviews from his players, where they’ve praised the organization, accountability and standards put in place.
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