Bears head coach Matt Eberflus might not be calling plays on defense, but he’s going to play a huge role in building this defense.
One major emphasis will be forcing turnovers, which is something Chicago has struggled with over the last three years. After amassing a league-best 36 takeaways in 2018, the Bears defense regressed in 2019 (19), 2020 (18) and 2021 (16).
During his time as the Colts defensive coordinator from 2018-21, Eberflus’ defenses ranked top-10 in takeaways each year. That’s no doubt a mindset he’s looking to instill in this Chicago defense.
“That’s how we’ll be practicing here with the Bears,” Eberflus said on The Cris Collinsworth Podcast. “We’re going to do a great job of punch, hammer, rake every single time. We’re going to be fanatical about it and, in turn, that’s going to help our offense protect the football because that goes hand-in-hand. If we’re stripping at it every single play on defense, our offense has got to have great ball security.”
Eberflus stressed a greater importance on taking the ball away during practice drills. It’s always going to be something they’re practicing.
“If we have 20 minutes in individual [practice drills], we’re going to spend 6-to-7 minutes on taking the ball away,” Eberflus said. “Every single drill for us is about taking the ball away. We’re always going to do that, a strip attempt every single play, scoop and score all loose balls. We’re always practicing that. It’s always on our mind. We emphasize it.”
Eberflus became known for his ballhawk shirts during his time in Indianapolis, which were distributed to those players who forced turnovers. It’s something many have wondered would carry over to the Bears.
Last year, it was the takeaway bucket. This season? Perhaps it’s ballhawk shirts. Whatever works to get Chicago back to taking the ball away.
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