Chicago Bears: Matt Eberflus to Build New Offense Around Fields

One thing that the new Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus emphasized in their introductory press conference was that the new offense would be built around quarterback Justin Fields.

The Chicago Bears had a press conference on Monday to introduce their new hires, general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus. The two men said all the right things to raise hopes for dejected fans who have suffered through a lot of losing for the better part of the last two decades.

The one thing they said that will make Chicago Bears fans happy is how they’ll build the offense. Eberflus is a defensive-minded coach so having the right offensive coordinator is crucial for a successful offense. Additionally, it is critical for the development of their franchise quarterback, Justin Fields.

When reporters asked about the offense, Eberflus’ response was perfect.

Building the offense around him and his strengths… We have to look at him…have to evaluate him. We have to see where his skill set is. And then see his camera. How does he see the game? How fast does he process [and] how fast does he do things and how can we stretch him as we go?

The coaches have to put Fields in a situation to succeed. Once they do that, it’s up to Fields to do his job.

This is a departure from what former head coach Matt Nagy did with Fields in 2021. Nagy was reluctant to give FIelds a shot at earning the starting job. He preferred going with veteran Andy Dalton. In fact, Nagy didn’t give Fields any reps with the starters during training camp or in the preseason games.

When Dalton got injured and Fields had to step in, there was a learning curve he had to go through. Instead of having some idea of what the receivers do or how the offensive line block, he had to learn on the job. Also, Nagy didn’t tailor his offense to fit Fields’ abilities. He basically left Fields out on an island to run for his life.

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Now things will be different. Poles made a big hire by getting former Green Bay Packers passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach Luke Getsy. Under Getsy, Aaron Rodgers will likely win his second straight MVP and the Packers’ offense was one of the best in the NFL.

Now Getsy gets to work with Fields and develop him into another successful quarterback. The move works two ways — it helps in the development of the offense and hurts their division rivals as well. With the Packers losing two coaches and entering salary cap hell (they will be more than $50 million over the salary cap in 2022), they’ll also likely lose wide receiver Davante Adams to free agency. Furthermore, Rodgers might not want to stay for a rebuild.

That puts the NFC North up for grabs. Things open up for another team to step in and dominate. Poles referred to that when he said “we’re going to take the [NFC] North and never give it back.”

If there is a team that takes over the North in the Packers’ absence, why can’t it be the Chicago Bears? Well, Poles and Eberflus pondered that question and feel it can and should be the Bears. Let’s see if they are right.