Read into it what you will, but it certainly seems like the Dallas Cowboys have seen enough of embattled first year defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus.
In this case, we can interpret this in a literal sense.
Eberflus announced he and head coach Brian Schottenheimer have agreed he will move from the sideline to the coaching booth for the final 3 games of the regular season.
“Cowboys DC Matt Eberflus told reporters he won’t be on the sideline for the rest of the season and will instead be calling the defense from the coaching booth,” The 33rd Team’s Ari Meirov wrote on X on Thursday, December 18.
The Cowboys are 31st in the NFL in scoring defense at a miserable 30.0 points per game and watched their defense flit away their playoff chances in consecutive losses to the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings in which they gave up a combined 78 points.
Eberflus has been on the hot seat for what seems like the majority of the season, and it’s only gotten hotter as the Cowboys appear destined to miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season.
“Dallas Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones says he’s been ‘very, very pleased’ with Dallas’ offense this season but says the defense has played at a level that he did not expect.” The Cowboys Network wrote on X on December 16. “Jerry Jones ,while talking about DC Matt Eberflus, said he believes that coaches should adapt their scheme to the players. Jones doesn’t think their talent is an issue.”
Nightmare Years for Eberflus’ Coaching Career
For Eberflus, the last few years have to seem like some kind of surreal nightmare.
Eberflus was an All-MAC linebacker at Toledo under head coach Nick Saban in 1989 and spent 30 years as a defensive coach on the college and NFL levels. He got his first chance to be a head coach with the Chicago Bears in 2022 following 4 seasons as the defensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts.
The Bears were as bad as they’ve been in anyone’s memory under Eberflus, going 14-32 before he was fired after a 4-8 start to the 2024 season. The Bears had the worst record in the NFL in 2022, going 3-14, and lost a franchise record 14 consecutive games across the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
Cowboys Traded Away Best Defensive Player
If Eberflus is making an argument to Jones or Schottenheimer to keep his job, he might start by pointing out the Cowboys traded away the team’s best defensive player just one week before the regular season when they sent NFL All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers.
That night not matter. If there’s going to be a sacrificial lamb this season for the Cowboys, you can almost guarantee it’s going to be Eberflus.
“After getting thrown under the bus by Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus says he will move to the coaches booth from the sideline for the final 3 games for a different perspective,” Sharp AG Official wrote on its official X account on December 18. “After that he’ll be watching games from the parking lot.”
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