(670 The Score) Matt Eberflus just had a moment.
His Bears had a whole bunch of them in a shocking 33-14 upset of the Patriots on Monday night in Foxboro -- an all-three-phases domination in national primetime that was enough in itself to restore some of the early optimism that had flagged after three straight dispiriting losses -- but this is one that must register as a rookie head coach not just passing a big early test but damn near acing it.
With the Bears rested and healthy since their last game 11 days ago, Eberflus and his staff spent the break evaluating and adjusting. General manager Ryan Poles told reporters before the game that he liked what he saw.
"We're on the doorstep," Poles said. "What I was really encouraged about was how we handled this mini-bye."
And then the Bears spent three hours showing exactly why.
Start wherever you want. Justin Fields kept his eyes up and his feet moving in an offense that got him out on the move and involved in cleverly constructed designed runs. His passing efficiency was only held to an 85.2 rating by an interception on a tipped ball, and he rushed for 82 yards and a touchdown. In all, he directed an attack that rolled up 390 net yards, converted 11 of 18 third downs and ran 70 total plays.
The defense was led by an assertive and active front seven that featured Roquan Smith, who had 12 tackles, a sack and an interception. Rookie defensive backs Jaquan Brisker and Kyler Gordon each grabbed their first career picks too, blowing up a Bailey Zappe hero narrative before it could even get started when the rookie quarterback came in for the ineffective Mac Jones in the second quarter.
Cairo Santos continues to be a machine taken for granted (which is amazing to even think, considering recent Bears kicking history). He made all four of his field goal tries and is perfect on the season.
So credit Luke Getsy, Alan Williams and Richard Hightower for all of that.
But Eberflus made it clear when he took the job that despite his defensive background, he wanted to be what we might call a more old-fashioned head coach, directing his attention to the whole operation instead of any one play sheet.
He should be proud of a win like this, one that reminded us that a Bears game can actually be entertaining, we're allowed to enjoy them and the august and austere national broadcasters can be gushingly complimentary.
This one outcome may not change the trajectory of the franchise, but it's OK to think it's more than a minor positive sign.
When Poles spoke of building methodically toward sustained quality and success, it wasn't lost on anyone where he was speaking: the home of the franchise that made a brand of everyone else's lofty goals. That his coach humbled Bill Belichick like that on his own field is no small thing.
Regardless of how easy it has been to lampoon his precious acronym or doubt his resume or his chops, Matt Eberflus has us all listening.
Dan Bernstein is the co-host of the Bernstein & Holmes Show on middays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on 670 The Score. You can follow him on Twitter @Dan_Bernstein.
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