Alan Williams, the Chicago Bears defensive coordinator, has resigned from his role. In a statement on Wednesday, he revealed that he is stepping back to take care of his health and that of his family. Five candidates are in line as a replacement if the team decides to hire a replacement.
In the absence of Alan Williams, Matt Eberflus, the head coach will assume the role of calling plays in the defense as a temporary measure. The news came in after close to a week when Alan Williams was absent. He said that he needed to concentrate on his and his family’s health. Alan Williams intends to return to coaching once he addresses those issues.
Eberflus will take on the additional role of the defense coordinator on game day along with his regular job as the head coach. During the week, the head coach will equally divide his time between defense and offense. He will also fall back on the veteran coaches in the defensive position to help him fill the gaps.
Coach Eberflus Will Fill In For Alan Williams For The Short Term
However, such an arrangement can only work in the short term. There was a marginal improvement in Week Two with Eberflus taking over. There were more offensives and the defense admirably pressured Mayfield more even than they could with Jordan Love in the first week. The defense stood firm and allowed only 7 points in the 2nd half.
But, they will have to plan differently for the long term and will need another defensive coordinator in the absence of Alan Williams. Eberflus believes that the team can manage without a dedicated DC, but only in the interim period. There have been instances when coaches have managed for extended periods without DCs. The results have been mixed and coaches have been forced to hire coordinators to manage with the workload.