When the Bears hired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron many took it as a sign that Matt Eberflus would stick around for the duration of his four-year contract with the Bears. Word was that Waldron would have several opportunities to choose from on the open market, so the line of reasoning was that Waldron wouldn’t choose a job where the head coach was already on the hot seat.
However in an interview with NBC Sports Chicago last week, NFL Insider Albert Breer said he doesn’t think Waldron’s hire offers any clues for Eberflus’ job security. Instead he’s looking at how the Bears quarterback plays in 2024– whoever that quarterback may be.
“A lot’s going to be based on what it looks like for the next four, five, six years,” Breer said. “That's where the decisions are going to be made.
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“I think Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus did a really good job in year two and the trajectory of the program is pointing up. But you know, there's a team president there in Kevin Warren, who didn't hire them. And so if things get funky next year, then you can certainly see Kevin Warren moving on. And I don't know that the presence of Shane Waldron and the fact that you hired Shane Waldron is going to do much to change that.”
So then why would Waldron take the Bears job if there was a chance he could be looking for another job again next year?
“I think one thing the Bears did that was really smart is they got ahead of the market,” Breer said. “A lot of other teams went through a longer process– Pittsburgh, New Orleans, New England– and by being aggressive and by identifying who they wanted and by going and getting him, I think they did as well as anybody. I mean, Shane Waldron was– I don’t want to use the word coveted, but he was coveted. And I think if you let that thing play out four, five, six days more, then there's a pretty good chance that Shane Waldron has three or four offers.
“As it stood, they were able to kind of make him make the decision. One in the hand or two in the bush? Obviously he took the one he had in the hand.”
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The Bears fired former offensive coordinator Luke Getsy shortly after the 2023 regular season finished. From there they opened up a wide search for the new OC that included at least nine names. But as Breer mentioned, the Bears moved quickly and hired Waldron within a few weeks.