It happened again. Just when you thought the "HITS" principle might finally take root somewhere else, the hammer dropped in Dallas.
On January 6, 2026, the Dallas Cowboys officially fired defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus. It was a short, brutal stay in Texas. One year. That’s all he got before Jerry Jones decided he’d seen enough of a defense that looked more like a sieve than a championship unit.
For Chicago fans, this feels like a weirdly familiar rerun. We watched the same movie at Soldier Field for three years. The hype, the "intensity," the defensive "foundations," and then—the inevitable collapse. Honestly, seeing him get let go after just one season as a DC is wild when you consider he was the head coach of the Chicago Bears just fourteen months ago.
How did we get here?
The Bears Coach Matt Eberflus Era: A Blueprint That Never Built a House
When Ryan Poles hired Matt Eberflus back in 2022, the vibe was all about discipline. He brought in this "HITS" acronym—Hustle, Intensity, Turnovers, and Smart Situational Football. It sounded great on a PowerPoint. It looked good on a t-shirt.
But on the grass? Different story.
Eberflus finished his tenure in Chicago with a 14-32 record. That is a winning percentage of .304, which is officially the second-worst in the long, storied, and sometimes painful history of the Chicago Bears. Only John Fox was statistically worse, and even that’s a "who cares" distinction when you're losing that much.
The real kicker was how it ended. November 29, 2024. Black Friday.
The Bears didn't just fire him; they made history doing it. It was the first time the franchise ever canned a head coach in the middle of a season. Think about that for a second. This team has existed for over a century. They've lived through some truly lean years with guys like Abe Gibron and Marc Trestman. But Eberflus was the one who finally broke the "wait until January" rule.
The tipping point was a six-game losing streak that culminated in a Thanksgiving Day disaster against the Detroit Lions. He had timeouts in his pocket. He didn't use them. The clock ran out, the fans erupted, and by Friday morning, his office was empty.
What Most People Get Wrong About the "Defensive Guru" Tag
People kept calling him a defensive mastermind because of his time with the Indianapolis Colts. And yeah, those Indy teams were solid. But the NFL moves fast. By the time he was trying to run his system in 2024 and 2025, the league had figured out how to shred his zone-heavy schemes.
Look at what happened in Dallas this past season.
The Cowboys defense under Eberflus was a total train wreck. They allowed over 30 points per game—30.1 to be exact. That’s a franchise record for the Cowboys, and not the kind you want. They gave up 511 points in a single season. Jerry Jones isn't exactly known for his patience, so when you give up 500+ points, you might as well start packing your bags before the Week 18 post-game presser even starts.
The Contrast in Chicago
It’s kinda funny (or depressing, depending on your loyalties) to see how the Bears look now that he’s gone.
Under new head coach Ben Johnson, the 2025 Bears went 11-6. They won the NFC North. They actually beat the Packers in the playoffs just a few days ago. Caleb Williams, who looked "embattled" and "lost" under Eberflus in 2024, just broke the franchise record for passing yards in a season.
Basically, the "Eberflus Problem" wasn't just about the defense. It was a culture of playing not to lose, rather than playing to win.
The Dallas Disaster: Why It Didn't Work
Why did a guy who was a successful DC for years suddenly forget how to stop a nosebleed?
- Scheme Rigidity: He stuck to his guns. Even when teams were targeting his cornerbacks in specific zone windows, he rarely adjusted to more man-to-man looks.
- The Talent Gap: In Indy, he had Darius Leonard in his prime. In Dallas, the secondary struggled to adapt to his specific read-and-react requirements.
- Pressure: After being fired mid-season by the Bears, he was under a microscope. Every mistake was amplified.
The Cowboys finished 2025 ranked 30th in total defense and dead last in passing defense. You can't survive that in a "win now" city like Dallas.
What Happens to Matt Eberflus Now?
Is he done in the NFL? Probably not. The league loves a retread with experience.
He’ll likely resurface as a linebackers coach or maybe a "senior defensive assistant" somewhere. But his days as a head coach—or even a high-profile defensive coordinator for a contender—are likely over for a long while. You can’t fail that loudly in Chicago and Dallas back-to-back and expect to get another key to a building anytime soon.
The lesson here is pretty simple. "Intensity" and "Hustle" are great, but they aren't a substitute for late-game clock management and modern schematic flexibility.
Actionable Takeaways for Following the 2026 Coaching Cycle
If you’re tracking how teams are rebuilding their staffs after the Eberflus era, keep an eye on these specific shifts:
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- The "Ben Johnson" Effect: Teams are now sprinting toward young, offensive-minded playcallers. The success of the 2025 Bears has made "defensive-minded" coaches a much harder sell to fanbases.
- The Cowboys DC Search: Dallas is already looking at Jim Leonhard and Brian Flores. They want aggression, not the "bend-but-don't-break" style that broke them last year.
- Bears Trajectory: Watch how Dennis Allen (the current Bears DC) continues to use the same players Eberflus had. The Bears led the league in takeaways in 2025 with largely the same roster "Coach Flus" couldn't win with. It’s a case study in deployment versus talent.
The Matt Eberflus story is a cautionary tale for NFL front offices. Don't fall in love with the culture if the scoreboard doesn't follow. For Bears fans, the "Flus" era is finally a distant memory, replaced by a playoff run that actually feels sustainable. For the Cowboys, the search for a defense begins—again.
Source References:
- Chicago Bears Official Coaching History (1920-2026)
- NFL Team Defensive Rankings, 2025 Season Stats
- Dallas Cowboys Press Release, January 6, 2026
- Pro Football Reference: Matt Eberflus Coaching Record