INDIANAPOLIS — Coming off a tumultuous season that many presumed would end with his firing, Bears coach Matt Eberflus has one of the hottest seats in the NFL. This season, he’ll have two new coordinators, most likely a new quarterback and a mandate to win.
A survey released by the NFLPA on Wednesday only adds to the pressure. Players ranked Eberflus No. 25 of the 32 coaches in the NFL. Four of the seven coaches listed below Eberflus on the list were fired last season.
The survey questions, given to 1,706 players around the league, produced report cards for teams in 11 categories ranging from cafeteria food to ownership. The Bears finished 10th overall.
Questions about coaching were limited to how valued players felt their time and input were by their bosses. Eighty-one percent of Bears players polled said they believed Eberflus was efficient with their time, which ranked 23rd out of 32 coaches. Players said he was somewhat willing to listen to his players — a statement that ranked him 18th.
“It’s not ‘How great of a football mind [are they]? Are they going to win games?’” NFLPA president J.C. Tretter said.
Still, the list of top coaches corresponds, in many cases, with their records. The Chiefs’ Andy Reid is first, while the coach he beat in the Super Bowl, the 49ers’ Kyle Shanahan, is seventh.
Two NFC North rivals were the only two outside of Reid to get an A+: the Vikings’ Kevin O’Connell ranked No. 2 and the Lions’ Dan Campbell No. 3. The Packers’ Matt LaFleur was 21st.
Only two of the top 21 coaches on the list were fired last season. Six of the bottom 11 were.
Eberflus received a B from his players. That’s less impressive, though, when graded on a curve. Like in the children in Lake Wobegon, almost every coach was considered by their players to be above average. Only three coaches received a score below a B-: the Falcons’ Arthur Smith (C+), the Commanders’ Ron Rivera (C ) and the Raiders’ Josh McDaniels (D).
Bill Belichick wasn’t spared. The former Patriots coach, who is within striking distance of the NFL’s all-time wins record, was ranked 27th. He had the second-worst grade in the NFL when it came to questions of whether he was efficient with players’ time and willing to listen to them. McDaniels, his protégé, was the only one worse.
Bears players gave the team’s ownership group a B+, which ranked 13th in the league, based on their perception that the team invests in facilities.
The report card is in its second season; the Bears ranked 13th in the NFL last year. Questions about owners and coaches did not appear last year.
The Bears’ facilities got the highest marks. Their weight room received an A, which ranked sixth. The Bears’ locker room was given an A-, which ranked fourth. The training room was a B+ (sixth) and the training staff was given a B (10th). The Bears’ travel experience got a B and was ranked sixth.
The lowest grades the Bears received from their players came in the cafeteria, which received a C, and a nutritionist, which got a C+. The Bears ranked 24th in food taste and 20th in freshness.
The Bears began offering gameday childcare for their players after last year’s survey. Players gave them a C+ in treatment of families.
Among the revelations in the report card: the Buccaneers make younger players have roommates on the road unless they pay $1,750 for their own room; Chiefs owner Clark Hunt got an F- for not following through on a promise to build a new locker room; and the Browns’ postgame meetup area for families is in a tent in the parking lot, even in winter.
“Teams that score well enjoy it,” Tretter said. “It’s never fun being graded poorly.”
