In an alternate universe, maybe Bears coach Matt Eberflus would have spent Friday pondering his future. Or packing.
Instead, he met with the Bears’ defensive coaches, reviewing the team’s approach in the running and passing games, on third down, in the red zone and with less than two minutes in each half. He then had a similar meeting with his offensive staffers. The goal was to come up with a plan for each of the players and to hand it to them Monday — after the Bears’ ‘‘mini-bye.’’
‘‘That’s how we’ll improve,’’ Eberflus said.
The self-scouting is how Eberflus needs to improve, too. He’s 1-4 this season and at 4-18 overall holds the Bears’ record for worst career mark by a head coach.
After their 40-20 victory Thursday against the Commanders, the Bears entered their weekend break with momentum for the first time in a long time. Their season has been disappointing, to be sure, but they have company: Their next two foes are a combined 2-6.
‘‘We’ve got to make sure we make the corrections and improve our weaknesses and maintain strength where we’re strong,’’ Eberflus said.
For Eberflus to gain some traction — and a chance at job security beyond the end of this season — here are three things he needs to figure out during the break:
Making the passing game sustainable
Quarterback Justin Fields averaged 154.6 passing yards through his first 30 games. In his last two, he has averaged almost exactly double: 308.5 yards. That’s a product of the defenses he has faced — the Broncos give up the highest passer rating in the NFL and the Commanders the seventh-highest — but it’s also a sign of growth.
The Bears are gaining an identity, even if the pass plays look different from week to week.
‘‘There’s been a lot of multiplicity to it, and I think it’s hard to defend,’’ Eberflus said. ‘‘And the looks have been different. The looks from last week were different than this week and so forth. It’s gonna keep doing that. You’ve gotta make it look different, even though you’re running the same types of concepts.’’
Generating a pass rush
Getting safety Eddie Jackson and cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon healthy will help Eberflus’ defense. So will trying to improve a pass rush that had only two sacks before a five-sack outburst Thursday.
As the Colts’ defensive coordinator, Eberflus rarely blitzed. His defenses finished among the bottom six in the NFL in blitz percentage in each of his four seasons with the Colts.
The last two weeks, Eberflus has been trying new things. He blitzed on a season-high 28% of passing downs Thursday. The previous high came last Sunday against the Broncos. Through the first three games, the Bears blitzed only 14.8% of the time.
‘‘We just gotta play what Coach calls,’’ slot cornerback Greg Stroman, who earned a sack on a blitz Thursday, said with a smile.
Staffing
Eberflus still plans to call the Bears’ defensive plays but said he’ll have conversations this weekend about whether to bring in a coach to help out on the defensive side. Coordinator Alan Williams resigned in Week 3 after inappropriate actions at work, and the Bears haven’t added anyone to fill the void.
‘‘If it’s right for us and works for us, it’s great,’’ Eberflus said. ‘‘If it doesn’t, that’ll be what it is. . . . There’s nothing wrong with bringing someone in who can help, [who] has a different perspective.’’
