To Save Their Season, the Chicago Bears Need to Bring Back this Coaching Legend

After the first three weeks of the NFL season, fans of the Chicago Bears feel as if they are living in a never-ending nightmare. The team has started the season winless, but even worse, seems to have regressed on both sides of the ball. This is not an easy task for a team that finished with the worst record in the NFL in 2022, was last in defensive DVOA, and a generous 25th in offensive DVOA, mostly thanks to the legs of quarterback Justin Fields. The Chicago Bears coach hasn’t put together any semblance of a competent team.

The 2023 season has so far shown the team to be mostly unwatchable on offense and even worse on defense. Injuries across the offensive line and defensive backfield have only worsened the holes in the roster. Unsurprisingly, head coach Matt Eberflus is taking his share of the blame, and fans are already calling on him to lose his job. Whether this is realistic or not depends on your view of the organization. However, if the Chicago Bears want to save any semblance of their 2023 season they need to consider replacing Eberflus with a Bear coaching legend.

The Chicago Bears Should Bring Back a Coaching Legend

It’s Time to Spread the Love Around Halas Hall

To stop the Chicago Bears from becoming the season-long laughing stock of the NFL, the team should look to its past and rehire Lovie Smith as the team’s head coach. For nine seasons, Smith was the calming influence on an organization that always seemed chaotic. Whether it was questionable ownership decisions or general managers who never seemed to fill holes on offense, Smith was the man who steered the ship to success the team hadn’t seen in decades.

As the head coach of the team, Smith compiled an 81-63 record, including three NFC North division titles, two NFC Conference Championship appearances, and one Super Bowl game, losing to Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts.

More than the wins and playoff appearances, Smith was almost always able to make the best out of a tough situation. Whether it was injuries to starting quarterback Rex Grossman, or the lack of offensive players brought in to match the team’s outstanding defenses, Lovie Smith never made excuses.

Coach Eberflus Has Seemingly Lost the Dressing Room

Matt Eberflus is someone who loves football and when he has the talent around him, can formulate a defensive game plan that can work. However, he seems over his head as the current head coach of the team. After losing 41-10, the Bears are in the midst of a 13-game losing streak that has haunted the team as they prepare for the Denver Broncos in Week 4.