On Monday, the Chicago Bears officially introduced their new general manager Ryan Poles, and their new head coach Matt Eberflus. During their introductory press conference, Poles and Eberflus laid out their vision on how they plan to lead the Bears back to playoff success. One of the biggest takeaways from the press conference was that Chicago’s new head coach will not be calling plays on defense, a decision that has proven costly for previous Bears’ head coaches.

Matt Eberflus says he will not call defensive plays. The DC will handle defensive play calling.

— Kevin Powell (@kpowell720) January 31, 2022

Previous Bears’ Head Coaches Have Made Mistakes Trying To Be Play-Callers

Although Eberflus has experience as a defensive play-caller, the Bears’ new defensive coordinator will be responsible for calling plays on defense. This decision is a wise one as Chicago’s new head coach will be more of a facilitator in the head coach role instead of being a head coach that mainly focuses on either offense or defense due to prior experience. This move comes as the Bears’ previous head coach Matt Nagy was the offensive play-caller for Chicago, after serving as the Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator during the latter part of the 2017 season.

Nagy struggled as an offensive play-caller for the Bears during his head coaching tenure as he lost play-calling duties in back-to-back seasons. Although there was a quality level of production from the offense in 2018, Chicago’s offense got steadily worse year after year. Nagy’s biggest mistake as a play-caller was his stubbornness to deploy different offensive schemes and an inability to own that he was at fault for the offense’s shortcomings. His weaknesses were exposed when offensive coordinator Bill Lazor took over play-calling, which led to the Bears’ offense having success almost immediately.

In 2020 as soon as Bears OC Bill Lazor stepped in to call plays for Matt Nagy the offensive production increased by 8 points per game. (27)

— Max Markham (@MaxMarkhamNFL) September 30, 2021

Another former Bears’ head coach that made the mistake of trying to be a play-caller while also serving as head coach was Lovie Smith, who called plays for the defense during the 2009 season. Following the team’s Super Bowl run in 2006, Chicago moved on from defensive coordinator Ron Rivera. Rivera was replaced by Bob Babich, who served as the Bears’ defensive coordinator in 2007 and 2008. Chicago’s defense would struggle to find consistency during those two seasons under Babich.

Smith would take over play-calling duties in 2009 after demoting Babich, but the defense would continue to struggle. In 2008, Chicago’s defense ranked 18th in the NFL, while a year later, they would drop to 21st in the league. Smith was almost fired following the 2009 season as the Bears only won seven games. The Bears would hire Ron Marinelli as their defensive coordinator for the 2010 season, which led to a resurgent performance as defense finished as the league’s fourth-best unit that season.

Rod Marinelli and Eberflus have a close connection after time together in Dallas.

Would not be shocked to see Marinelli make a return to Chicago to be on Eberflus's staff.

Marinelli served as the #Bears DC in 2010-2012.

— Bears Nation (@BearsNationCHI) January 27, 2022

Not Calling Plays Allows Focus To Be Provided To The Entire Team

Eberflus’ decision to not call plays on defense is also significant as it will allow him to focus on the entirety of the team instead of just one side of the ball. Too often now in the NFL, head coaches make the mistake of focusing solely on offense or defense and then allowing their coordinator to be fully responsible for the other side of the team. The strategy often can lead to the head coaches making roster mistakes and having continuity issues if a coordinator leaves for a promotion.

Following the successful 2018 season when the Bears won the NFC North Division with 12 wins, the team would lose their defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, who the Denver Broncos hired as their new head coach. Nagy had allowed Fangio to be fully in charge of the defensive side of the ball for Chicago. The 2018 Bears’ defense was the best in the league as they ranked number one in sacks and turnovers. Nagy replaced Fangio with Chuck Pagano as defensive coordinator, which unfortunately led to a decline in dominance by Chicago’s defense in 2019 and 2020.

3. What Chuck Pagano has done to this defensive unit after Vic Fangio is downright pathetic. Matt Nagy really should make a change before Sunday. (He won't, but he should.)

It cannot — I repeat, cannot — be that easy for Aaron Rodgers against this roster.

— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) January 4, 2021

It is so vital that Eberflus plans to be an overseer as a head coach, given how significant quarterback Justin Fields’ development will be with the new offensive coaching staff. Packers’ quarterbacks’ coach Luke Getsy will be the Bears’ new offensive coordinator and the person most responsible for Fields’ growth in 2021. Eberflus needs to be an observer of the offensive coaching staff, given that Getsy will be a first-time play-caller. Being an observer and aware of what the offensive coaching staff is doing is also important in the case that the Bears’ offensive coordinator moves on to a head coaching position if the offense is successful with Fields. Eberflus will need to know how to replace Getsy in the best way possible, even if it includes promoting someone on the offensive coaching staff.

Joe Brady has the same agent as Matt Eberflus and Ryan Poles, and he and Luke Getsy both coached under Joe Moorhead in college.

He has so many connections to this #Bears regime. I would be shocked if they didn't hire him and try to bring back some of his LSU magic.

— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) February 1, 2022

Eberflus is positioning himself to where he is not neglecting one part of the Bears’ team for another, something that previous head coaches have made the mistake of doing. When Smith was Chicago’s head coach, the defensive-minded coach never demonstrated the ability to solve the struggles of his offense due to his lack of offensive knowledge. Nagy, during his four seasons with the Bears, never allowed any of his offensive coaches to try to take over the offense when he struggled as the play-caller, which resulted in his firing. Eberflus is willing to trust his coordinators and serve as an overseer as head coach, which can be the difference between success and failure for the Bears.