Why ex-Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus will flop as Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus
Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
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As a defensive mind, Matt Eberflus ain’t all he’s cracked up to be.

When the Chicago Bears tabbed the former Indy offensive coordinator as their head coach after the 2021 season, the hire was met with indifference, as Flus' '21 Colts D was…okay.

Indianapolis Defense: 2021 Rankings

  • Total Yards Allowed: 16th
  • Points Allowed: 9th
  • Takeaways: 2nd
  • Rushing Yards Allowed: 10th
  • Passing Yards Allowed: 19th
  • Rushing Touchdowns Allowed: 3rd
  • Passing Touchdowns Allowed: 31st

Not great. Not terrible. Just…okay.

During his stretch in Chicago, Flus’ defenses had their moments—they were relatively scary during latter half of the 2023 season—but last year, the Bears couldn’t stop anybody, especially on the ground.

Chicago Defense: 2024 Rankings

  • Yards Allowed: 27th
  • Points Allowed: 13th
  • Takeaways: 10th
  • Rushing Yards Allowed: 28th
  • Passing Yards Allowed: 16th
  • Rushing Touchdowns Allowed: 24th
  • Passing Touchdowns Allowed: 1st

That all being the case, at this point, every team in the NFL knows what they’d get out of a Matt Eberflus defense: Consistent mediocrity punctuated with a few highs and lots of lows.

Apparently, the Dallas Cowboys are cool with that.

What the Heck Is Going On in Big D?

Yesterday, the Dallas Cowboys announced they’d hired Eberflus as their defensive coordinator just days after they’d made the controversial decision to promote offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to head coach.

Thing is, Dallas needed a slam dunk hire (spoiler alert: Flus is definitely not that), as their defense took a major step backwards from the previous season.

Points Allowed Per Game

  • 2023: 18.5
  • 2024: 27.5

Yards Allowed Per Game

  • 2023: 330.2
  • 2024: 355.2

Passing Yards Allowed Per Game

  • 2023: 200.9
  • 2024: 218.1


Rushing Yards Allowed Per Game:

  • 2023: 129.3
  • 2024: 137.1

Turnover Differential

  • 2023: +10
  • 2024: -6


Sacks

  • 2023: 54
  • 2024: 38

In the Cowboys’ defense, their 2024 unit was an injury-riddled mess:

  • DaRon Bland: Only played seven games due to a stress fracture in his foot.
  • Trevon Diggs: Sustained a knee injury in Week 14 that forced him out for remainder of the year.
  • DeMarcus Lawrence: Suffered foot injury in Week 4 that ended his season.
  • Micah Parsons: Missed four games due to a high ankle sprain.
  • Sam Williams: A knee injury from training camp finished his campaign before it started.

Injuries aside, based on Flus’ meh history, one wonders if he's the guy to help Dallas find its mojo.

Well, one would look numbers and say, Hell no.

Jerry's Gonna Jerry

Despite Flus’ historically lousy record in Chicago (14-32) and his super-average work in Indy, it seems counterintuitive to rely on him to be The Guy. But to Cowboys’ owner/president/GM Jerry Jones, the 54-year-old has two things going for him:

Experience

  • NFL decision-makers tend to value an extensive resume over a good resume. Nine current head coaches—just under 1/3rd of the league’s sideline generals—have previously led one or more teams, and the only general who has had notable success at a past stint was Andy Reid.

Familiarity

  • Eberflus was the Cowboys' linebacker coach between 2011-2017, during which time the ’Boys allowed an average of 22.7 points and 318.1 yards, an improvement on Dallas’ 2024 numbers, but a step down from 2023. Still, Jerry knows the dude, and that's apparently enough.

Nonetheless, the whole thing feels very, very mid, which tells us that Jones is comfortable with mediocrity.

Does Flus Have the Juice?

Maybe a healthy batch of players can get Dallas back to its imposing 2023 level. Maybe they’ll be able to grab a quality EDGE with one of their 10 draft picks, three of which are in the top 76. Maybe they’ll figure out a way to give Flus the tools he needs to succeed.

But even if the Dallas Cowboys do land the horses, there should be plenty of concern in Jerryworld, as Matt Eberflus has yet to prove he can haul a team across the finish line.


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Alan Goldsher
ALAN GOLDSHER

Alan Goldsher has written about sports for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Apple, Playboy, NFL.com, and NBA.com, and he’s the creator of the Chicago Sports Stuff Substack. He’s the bestselling author of 15 books, and the founder/CEO of Gold Note Records. Alan lives in Chicago, where he writes, makes music, and consumes and creates way too much Bears content. You can visit him at http://www.AlanGoldsher.com and http://x.com/AlanGoldsher.