When it comes to Chicago sports, you have to be a straight shooter.
That’s the case whether you’re a player, coach, broadcaster, writer, or fan. You can’t sugarcoat things in that town. Trust me.
Plus, if you’re not short and to the point and you call into ESPN 1000 to spit hot takes, you’re getting hung up on faster than you can spell Eberflus.
Oh yeah, Matt Eberflus is heading to the Windy City.
I watched regime after regime try to win the Cubs a World Series, owners completely rip apart the Blackhawks in the early 2000s, Michael Jordan’s departure crumble the Bulls for years, and of course, like a turnstile, coaches try to fix the Bears.
Chicago is a complex town. They’ll either love or shame you forever based on what you do in very tight and short windows. You can become a legend overnight.
The hiring of Eberflus by the Bears is perplexing. I found it astounding that he was getting head coaching interviews after the disaster that we knew as the Indianapolis Colts in January of 2022.
Brutal.
Still, Eberflus sat down with the Jacksonville Jaguars twice after they roasted him in what is now his final game as a defensive coordinator (for now).
Let’s be clear. I wish Eberflus the best. He’s a nice guy with a true passion for football. Bears fans will see that passion as he clearly wears his heart on his sleeve.
The problem in this entire equation is actually not on Eberflus.
He might end up being great one day. Although, this will be the first time in his career that he’s ever been a head coach. Before the Colts days, his only prior coordinator experience was in college at Missouri. He’s going to need time to transition into the role as head coach, and even more so as the head man for a team and organization like the Bears.
That is exactly the issue. Chicago doesn’t give you time.
They expect results, and fast. Hell, look at Matt Nagy’s tenure. This was the Associated Press’ headline when he was hired by Chicago.
“NFL: Bears select young QB guru as head coach”
Could you imagine calling Nagy a quarterback guru now? You’d get kicked out of Sluggers in Wrigleyville in about 2.5 seconds. SEE YA!
It’s not just football either.
Within about a year of each other, the manager that brought the Cubs their first World Series ring since 1908, Joe Maddon, and the coach that built the Blackhawks into a dynasty with three Stanley Cups in six years, Joel Quenneville, were each run out of town.
Fired. Let go. Sent packing.
We’re talking about two coaches here in Maddon and Quenneville that you have to put on the damn Chicago sports coaches Mount Rushmore.
If they can get pitchforked out of town and sent to Anaheim and Miami, I’m not giving the media, fans, and town much time until they become frustrated with Eberflus if things don’t work immediately.
Again, this is a franchise coming off years of embarrassment with their first round quarterback prodigy failing, a double-doink out of the playoffs, incompetent play calling, and now are onto yet another top quarterback draft pick.
The Bears must get the offensive coordinator decision correct if Eberflus is going to survive; And even more so for the benefit of Justin Fields.
If they don’t, you’re just getting right back to the cycle of what we know as the Chicago Bears. It’s like clockwork.
