Since their disappointing elimination at the hands of the Washington Commanders, the Detroit Lions have been going through a radical transformation. Dan Campbell already lost his offensive and defensive coordinators and is at serious risk of more assistant coaches departing.
How the Lions are going to fill the massive shoes of Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn remains to be seen. Campbell hasn’t ruled anything out and said that he is willing to consider both internal and external hires in the process.
Colton Pouncy of The Athletic identified these potential candidates in his latest column. A long list of defensive coordinator candidates includes internal options like linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard, defensive backs coach Deshea Townsend, and defensive assistant Jim O’Neil. The most fascinating name on the list, however, is a very familiar name to NFC North teams.
Former Bears head coach Matt Eberflus was one of the first names mentioned by Pouncy in his list of defensive coordinator candidates.
“Eberflus was often criticized for his game management as a head coach. But there’s no denying he’s a good coordinator…He might not be the leader-of-men type that Glenn was, but he knows how to run a defense. “
– Colton Pouncy, The Athletic
This is a surprising inclusion, as Eberflus had a disastrous tenure in Chicago over the last three seasons. Since his hiring in the 2022 offseason, Eberflus struggled immensely as the Bears head coach, leading them to a 14-32 record. As a result, he became the first head coach to be fired mid-season in franchise history.
At the same time, we have seen plenty of coaches who struggled as a head coach but thrived in a coordinator role. Pouncy stated that Eberflus still knows how to run a defense even though he failed in certain head coaching aspects.
Eberflus was the defensive coordinator for the Colts for four seasons before going to Chicago. In Indianapolis, he led them to back-to-back top-ten finishes in defense, including some of the best run defenses in the league. That certainly hasn’t translated to his tenure with the Bears.
There are certainly benefits to hiring an experienced defensive coordinator who knows the division so well. It would make the transition from Aaron Glenn that much easier, but whether Eberflus fits in the player-centric and motivational stylings of Dan Campbell is a different question.
