ESPN NEWS: Grading the Bears’ hiring of DC Eric Washington

January 30, 2024 Forgiveness Igbadio Sports 0

The Chicago Bears have their coordinators set. They took care of the offense last week when they hired Shane Waldron, and now the defense is ready to go. The Bears hired former Buffalo Bills defensive line and assistant head coach Eric Washington to be their new defensive coordinator. Washington has coached in the league for over 15 years and is coming back to the place it all started.

Washington began his NFL coaching career with the Bears as a defensive assistant. He was promoted to defensive line coach in 2010, the position he’s spent the most time at as a coach. Washington then spent seven years with the Carolina Panthers in the same role before being promoted to defensive coordinator for the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He was with the Bills from 2020 until this past season and is now back with the Bears in a more prominent role, filling the vacancy left by Alan Williams after he resigned in September.

Though Washington holds the title of defensive coordinator, he won’t be calling plays on gameday. That responsibility still remains with head coach Matt Eberflus. Still, this is an important hire for the Bears as they look to keep their defense on the right track going into the 2024 season. Here is our initial grade of the hiring.

Initial grade: B+

There was skepticism about Eberflus’ ability to draw quality coordinator candidates given his perceived job status, but he deserves credit for finding quality individuals at both spots. Washington has years of experience as a defensive line coach, which is exactly where the Bears should look to improve. He’s coached some incredible players, from Ed Oliver to Brian Burns and even future Hall of Famer Julius Peppers. His defensive lines have usually performed well, too. Windy City Gridiron’s Jacob Infante discovered Washington’s lines have ranked in the top half of the league in sacks 11 times since the 2010 season, including seven years inside the top 10.

The only question mark surrounding Washington is his ability to develop young talent. He’s done well with players like Oliver and fellow Buffalo Bills edge rusher AJ Epenesa in recent years, but none have exploded in production. Washington was part of the staff that drafted Burns, but he only worked with him for one year. Assuming he will be focused on the defensive line, Washington will need to show he can help develop younger players like Gervon Dexter and Zacch Pickens.

But Washington’s role isn’t just focused on the line; he’s coordinating the whole defense. Fortunately, he has experience doing that, too, even if he didn’t have the best results. Washington spent two seasons as the Panthers defensive coordinator, where his units finished in the middle of the pack. Carolina’s defense wasn’t spectacular during his tenure, finishing 15th in yards per game (353) in 2018 and 23rd (374.5) in 2019. That was also at the end of the Ron Rivera era, though, and he won’t need to call the defense during game days with Eberflus retaining that responsibility.

The Bears needed someone who could serve as a teacher and get the defense ready through the week. Washington is a solid fit for that. He’s disciplined, and former players have raved about his preparedness and hard-nosed style of coaching. Washington’s style won’t be for everyone, but it’s a nice change of pace from Eberflus. They should complement each other well as they look to get the most out of a rising defense.

 

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


Copyright © 2024