The Dallas Cowboys dropped to 1-2 on the year after they were defeated 31-14 by the Chicago Bears on Sunday. The Cowboys, unfortunately, lost CeeDee Lamb to an ankle injury, yet the defense ended up being even more underwhelming than the offense.
Not only did they allow 31 points, but they gave up 385 total yards of offense to Chicago as well, with the Bears averaging 6.8 yards per play. Caleb Williams had his best game of the season, going 19-of-28 for 298 passing yards with four passing touchdowns. More importantly, he threw zero interceptions.
Fans were upset with defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus for looking lost out there and not having his unit prepared to play. Worst of all, this game has many rethinking the decision to hire Eberflus given how his unit has performed to begin the year.
Matt Eberflus’ Defense Had a Terrible Showing in Week 3
This performance comes just one week after the Cowboys allowed 506 yards of offense to the New York Giants, including Russell Wilson going 30-of-41 for 450 yards and three passing touchdowns. The Cowboys entered this game 30th in the league in total defense (404) with 30.5 points given up.
Instead of coming through and getting revenge on his old team, he gave them a confidence boost while deflating hope for the Dallas fanbase. Leading up to the game, head coach Brian Schottenmier told reporters that Eberflus was helping out in offensive meetings, passing any knowledge he had about the Bears.
While that sounded smart in theory, it's clear he needed more time preparing for this tilt. The Bears made it clear they weren't worried about Eberflus. Johnson said this past week that, "Yeah, well, we've got guys in the building that know how his mind works. So we have some information on just schematically how he liked to approach my offense in general, and his feelings on Caleb. I feel like we know what he knows, and we'll be just fine there."
And the performance in Week 3 definitely showed that statement was right. The Cowboys' defense had its faults coming into this game, and the Bears only magnified them. Chicago certainly knew Eberflus' tendencies, and they exploited them.
It has been an underwhelming start for the Cowboys' defense, and Eberflus has his work cut out. He needs to find answers and get them quickly, as patience is beginning to wear thin. Since Dallas won 40-37 in Week 2, the talk was low, but as the losses add up, the chatter will become louder and louder if this defense can't turn things around.
No head coach wants to hire whiff on a coordinator hiring, but Brian Schottenheimer is staring down the barrel of exactly that in just three weeks. There needs to be a clear message that these kind of results can't happen, or Eberlus' weaknesses will only hold Schotty back.