What Eberflus saw in Caleb Williams: Takeaways from Chicago Bears' Matt Eberflus from the NFL Owners Meetings

ORLANDO - The more the Chicago Bears roster changes, the more Matt Eberflus' philosophies stay the same.

"The team changes every year," Eberflus said. "Like John Wooden says, put your socks on and lace up your shoes every single year. And we're excited about getting that started."

There have been plenty of changes to the Bears roster this offseason. Welcome, Kevin Byard; goodbye, Eddie Jackson. That's just one of the major moves.

Eberflus put all of those in perspective on Tuesday.

Here are some takeaways from what Eberflus said at the NFL Owners Meetings on Tuesday.

Eberflus had a sales pitch for free agency, and it worked

Adding the likes of Byard, Gerald Everett, D'Andre Swift and more to the roster was going to take some convincing. Especially with the Bears coming off a 7-10 season.

But, Eberflus had a sales pitch.

"I spent about 45 minutes to an hour just really talking to them about the foundation that we laid the first two years," Eberflus said. "How we operate in the building, how we're respectful and how we work hard."

That pitch worked.

Eberflus and the Bears got the players they wanted. Now, the Bears need to build upon the foundation they sold their acquisitions on. 

"I think it might have been, what, 15 or 16 new guys, that are coming in," Eberflus said. "Then obviously the four picks that we have coming into the draft. So that's an exciting time for us."

Eberflus stayed on top of the Fields' trade

The biggest move of the season also had to be the most difficult for Eberflus.

The Bears traded Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers in a move that shakes up the Bears' future while also doing right by Fields.

Eberflus then called his players to tell them about the move to keep them informed.

"Both sides thought that Pittsburgh was the place for him to be successful," Eberflus said. "We understand that, and I just want to let you know ahead of time."

That's a tough endeavor.

By the time Eberflus got to some players, they had already heard the news. But, he said the players appreciated the honesty and how up front the head coach was. That earns points in the long run, you'd have to imagine.

"It's hard to do because when the news hits, they've already heard it," Eberflus said. "Just being upfront and honest with those guys, they appreciated that. Every guy that I talked to said, ‘coach, I really appreciate you reaching out and letting me know ahead of time.'"

Eberflus' is seeing all the right things in Caleb Williams

One of the biggest moments off the offseason was when Eberflus got to meet USC quarterback and prospective No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at his USC Pro Day last week.

Before the pro day, Eberfus got to spend time with Williams at dinner with some of his teammates.

"We went to dinner the night before with several of the players on the USC team that are draft eligible," Eberflus said. "It was great to see him interact: the great personality, great character. You could see that easily during the dinner."

That's the biggest part: Williams' character. Both Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles stressed the character being a massive part of how the team will evaluate quarterbacks.

Eberflus was impressed there. What about the football side?

"The next day, we spent some time doing the football knowledge and all those things," Eberflus said. "I started out about an hour and 20 minutes, just him and I in the room together and just really hearing his journey. His journey from being a little guy and what I gleaned from that was how his mother and father love him very much, and very supportive."

In all, it's safe to say Eberflus was impressed with the prospective quarterback. Like Williams said at the combine, his tape speaks for itself. But, the team wants to go beyond that.

Checking the character box was important for the team and Eberflus.

"We could see his character, his football character there, his football knowledge as I talked through that," Eberflus said. "It was a really good visit."

The Bears are keeping their options open at No. 9 overall

After officially moving on from Justin Fields, the Bears are assuredly taking a quarterback at No. 1 overall.

After that just eight picks later, the Bears have to decide what avenue they want to take.

Either way, the Bears are going to get a talented player.

"We're going to get a blue player there for sure," Eberglus said. "What we've done in free agency allows us to be flexible there, to be able to really take the best player that we feel fits for us in that spot."

The best player might be an edge rusher, an offensive tackle or a wide receiver. It seems broad, but Eberflus said he wants a player that can help or hinder the most important position in sports.

"This guy helps our team better, this guy helps this way," Eberflus said. "It's all to me about always either affecting the quarterback or helping the quarterback. So, it comes down to those two questions."

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