Following Monday’s introductory press conference with new general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus, it’s clear that change is coming to the Chicago Bears.
While former head coach Matt Nagy was obsessed with calling plays on offense — even though he was so bad he had to give it up twice — Eberflus has a different approach.
Eberflus said he won’t be calling defensive plays because it takes away from his responsibilities as a head coach. A refreshing mindset after Nagy.
“I do believe that to be the head football coach and be efficient at that, you are exactly the head football coach,” Eberflus said. “So I can be involved in all aspects of the game. So the defensive coordinator we hire will call the defensive plays. I will not do that.”
It’s not the most innovative approach in the world, but it’s refreshing given Nagy never seemed to figure out his job was to be the head coach, not the offensive coordinator.
The question is who will be calling those defensive plays for the Bears next season. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Bears are targeting Indianapolis Colts safeties coach Alan Williams to be their defensive coordinator.
Williams boasts 20-plus years of NFL coaching experience, where he’s served primarily as a defensive backs coach. He’s coached defensive backs in Indianapolis (2002-11), Detroit (2014-17) and with the Colts again (2018-Present). Williams does have prior defensive coordinator experience having served as Minnesota’s DC from 2012-13.
We’re still waiting on an official announcement from the Bears, but all signs point to Williams becoming the new defensive coordinator.
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