Cubs News: Eberflus discusses quarterback room, Waldron, Velus Jones Jr. |
CHICAGO — With the preseason over and Chicago’s initial 53-man roster set, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams is finally ready to prepare for the Bears’ season opener against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, Sept. 8 (Noon / FOX).
Head coach Matt Eberflus's focus is on making sure Williams gets the ball to his playmakers and is smooth in his operation of the team. “I really think that comes down to play design. I’m just going to micro it down to, actually, to the play. So, we all know what he can do in terms of his arm talent, in terms of throwing on the move and those types of things,” Eberflus said. “But, in the early parts of the game and early downs, he’s just asked to play point guard, have great operation, play point guard, get the ball to our skill either by handing it off or throwing it to them and letting them do the running and moving around and gaining the yards and it’s going to be big that our offensive line plays well (and) everyone plays well around him, that’s defense and special teams included. So, then when you get to the point in the game where it is a critical down or a third down or in the red zone or whatever that might be, then you might see X factor come out and that’s where it is. But, again, he’s just about the process of getting in and out of the huddle, being smooth and operating the offense.” Part of what has helped Williams in his transition to the NFL is having offensive coordinator Shane Waldron as the play caller. Waldron has experience calling offenses and has been talked about by numerous players as a great teacher when it comes to explaining his offense and ensuring the players understand it. However, that chemistry must also develop between a coordinator and the head coach. According to Eberflus, this process has gone well between him and Waldron. “I think the most important thing this offseason was working with a new offensive coordinator, making sure that we’re on the same page in terms of what we’re calling, why we’re doing certain situations during certain times of the game and being on the same page there and we’re very methodical about that, how we teach that to the team and how we practice that during training camp and during the season. So, it’s been good,” Eberflus said. Waldron’s talent as a teacher and experience, specifically working with quarterbacks, come in handy when working with a young quarterback room. Chicago opted to keep only two quarterbacks—Williams and second-year quarterback Tyson Bagent. Furthermore, the Bears signed rookie Austin Reed to the practice squad. This makes Bagent the oldest and most experienced quarterback in the room. While it may be an unusual strategy to carry three quarterbacks with a combined one year of NFL experience, Eberflus and the rest of the staff showed their confidence in Bagent as the backup; he also stated they like Reed’s potential and talent. “We just like the way (Reed) operates,” Eberflus said. “I mean, super smart, he performed well in the games, was great in the quarterback room in terms of supporting and being involved and engaged there, and we think he’s got a bright future.” One player who was a little bit of a surprise making the 53-man roster is Velus Jones Jr. Jones Jr., who switched positions from wide receiver to running back, and he proved that he is capable of making a difference for the Bears. This is particularly true in the final preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs when he had 111 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Ultimately, his effort and willingness to convert to a different position earned him a spot on the roster. “He made it just by his efforts and the production he had in practice, in the preseason games and his willingness to be able to adjust and adapt and then be able to get that done in terms of his performance. I commend the coaches for doing a wonderful job in that - (running backs coach) Chad (Morton) and (assistant running backs coach) Jennifer (King) and (wide receivers coach) Chris (Beatty) and Shane (Waldron), and all the guys that had to work with him (to) help him be successful,” Eberflus said. “He partnered up with those guys. So, it’s a really good effort by everybody and again, it comes down to him being able to do it and his willingness to want to and the work ethic. So, he’s going to be a guy for us that we can use in multiple ways. He can use him in the backfield, he can spread him out, we can do things, a lot of different things with him and that’s, to me, a benefit, trying to defend that when he comes in the game is a little bit different than just a normal type of receiver or a guy that can line up in the backfield. So, I think it creates a little bit of a time-on-task practice-wise for the opponent and also preparation in the film study.”
