Bears Make Bold Move: Matt Eberflus Fired Following Shane Waldron’s Departure as OC…..See details

Is the Bears’ offence going to get any better after switching coordinators? In comparison to Shane Waldron’s play calling in the previous three games and a couple of others, it’s hard to envision it damaging their cause more.

Last year, researchers from the Washington Post looked at all teams that let leave of their offensive coordinators throughout the season. They found that half of those teams saw some improvement, but it was little and fleeting.

Following Waldron’s departure, Thomas Brown will take over as offensive coordinator. Brown was a finalist for the position last season.

“After evaluating our entire operation, I decided that it is in the best interest of our team to move in a different direction with the leadership of our offence,” coach Matt Eberflus wrote in a statement posted by the team on Tuesday. This choice was thoughtful, and it was made with care and consideration. I appreciate Shane’s hard work and wish him the best in the future.

Following three years as Sean McVay’s running backs and tight ends coach with the Rams, Brown spent last season coaching three games as play caller and seven as offensive coordinator/play caller for Carolina. He spent 2016–18 with the Hurricanes as their offensive coordinator.

According to Eberflus, Thomas possesses a talent for calling plays while maintaining a collaborative approach. He is also a bright offensive mind. “I look forward to his leadership over our offensive coaching staff and his plan for our players.”

Coming off his time working with McVay as an offensive coordinator and assistant with the Panthers and the Rams, the man has extensive knowledge of the offence. While at Carolina last year, he was in charge of Frank Reich’s offence, which was mostly unsuccessful.

They scored 11.4 points per game while Brown was in charge of the Panthers’ offence. In Frank Reich’s games, they scored 17.4 points per contest. With an average loss of 8.3 points under Brown and 13.8 points under Reich, he kept them in more games than Reich. With Brown, they ran for 107.1 yards a game, while with Reich, it was 99.7. Brown threw for 148.4 yards per game, and Reich 179.6.

Brown, who is 38 years old, will undoubtedly provide the Bears with an enthusiastic offensive coordinator who is eager to be involved on a personal level. He played running back for the Hurricanes in the past and is now their fifth-leading rusher of all time.

When Brown replaced Frank Reich as Carolina’s play caller last season, he became just the third black offensive coordinator in NFL history, joining Eric Bieniemy and Brian Johnson of Philadelphia. His “hands-on” and enthusiastic coaching style gained him praise from head coach Sean McVay during his three years as the running backs’ or tight ends’ coach for the Los Angeles Rams.

While working as an assistant for the Los Angeles Rams, Brown tore his Achilles tendon while delivering valuable practice looks to the running backs.

“He tears his Achilles and then you flash forward and you know just a couple months later this guy’s on the sideline chasing (former Rams RB) Cam Akers on a long run he breaks down the sideline, you know, when he still should be in a walking boot,” McVay told reporters at Carolina.

Although Brown did not jump straight from his position as an assistant with the Rams to that of offensive coordinator with Carolina last season, he did serve as play caller on two separate occasions and experienced highs and lows in the games he was a part of.