Bears Must Do One Key Thing Now That Matt Eberflus is Returning

The first couple dominos have already fallen to start the Chicago Bears' offseason. Reports have surfaced that the Bears are moving on from offensive coordinator Luke Getsy but will be retaining Matt Eberflus as the head coach. Eberflus will now need to fill multiple holes on his staff, including both offensive and defensive coordinator positions.

There must be much more to Eberflus than we in the public are aware of. Whether it is his relationship with Ryan Poles (they share an agent) or his influence and demeanor in the locker room, the McCaskey family obviously believe that him staying as head coach is the right way to move forward.

Knowing that Eberflus is back, there is now really only one way to move forward to avoid falling into the same trap the Bears have multiple times in the past decade.

Bears Must Trade Down, Keep Fields to Justify Eberflus Staying

In 2017, after signing quarterback Mike Glennon to a lucrative deal, the Bears traded up from third position to second in the NFL Draft to select quarterback Mitchell Trubisky without head coach John Fox's knowledge. After that next season, the Bears fired Fox. They then hired Matt Nagy as head coach. After determining the future was with Nagy as coach but not Trubisky as quarterback, they signed free agent Andy Dalton and traded up in the 2021 NFL Draft to select Justin Fields. They then fired Nagy after that season.

Notice a trend anyone? Now, Eberflus has survived another failed season with a quarterback he inherited as the Bears look to move forward. If the Bears mean anything they have said about wanting to be better and turn a corner, their hand has been forced.

Whether fans like it or not, the only thing to do is retain Fields as the starting quarterback. They need to let him have a voice in the search for a new offensive system. They need to build everything on that side of the ball, from play calling to personnel, to directly compliment his skillset moving forward.

They must now accept the haul of future assets to trade out of the first pick. Then, go get Marvin Harrison Jr and build Fields' offense. In the second and/or third rounds, assess the quarterbacks and choose one that matches the offense. The best-case scenario is that Fields thrives, and you trade this budding star for more future assets down the road, but this is a safety net in case Eberflus and Fields follow the course of history.

I cannot believe we are here again, but here we are. If this is the path they are choosing, this is the only way to change what the past has been.

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