Bears head coach Matt Eberflus has already earned a reputation for being conservative. Look no further than the fact that, until Sunday, Chicago had only gone for it on fourth down once through four games.
Well, Eberflus shook that reputation up with some bold decisions, which included that fourth-down attempt — a successful Justin Fields scramble — against the Vikings. But his boldest move was his decision to attempt an onside kick after the Bears had just cut the deficit to 21-16 early in the third quarter.
Unfortunately, the Vikings were able to recover it — just barely. But it was the kind of decision where Eberflus was attempting to build on momentum, using analytics, to help turn the tide.
“It set up perfectly,” Eberflus said. “When we do something like that, I told the entire defense, ‘Listen, we’re going for this. And there’s a chance we don’t get it. But listen, I want you to respond to this if we don’t get it. Sudden change, you respond to it.’ And they all did. They responded, they rose up there and they ended up blocking the field goal. To me, it was a wash.”
As Eberflus noted, the failed onside kick attempt didn’t prove to be costly. The Bears defense came up with a crucial stop to force a Vikings field goal, which was blocked by rookie Dominique Robinson.
“I told the entire defense, I said, listen, we’re going for this, OK?” Eberflus said. “And there’s a chance we don’t get it. But listen, I want you to respond to this. If we don’t get it, sudden change, you respond to it. And they all did.”
Eberflus’ decision to attempt the onside kick showed faith in his team, and it didn’t go unnoticed by his players.
“Loved it,” said Bears receiver Darnell Mooney said of the onside kick, via 670 the Score. “Loved it. Loved it. Love how he has confidence in us, how he trusts us and just love his aggressiveness. I appreciate it as a player.”
Now we’ll see if this newfound boldness is a trend that continues down the line…when a situation calls for it.
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