Getty Former Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett visited the Bears' training camp.
Jason Garrett knows Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus well.
Eberflus, who is in his first year as head coach in Chicago, served as linebackers coach with the Dallas Cowboys from 2011-17 when Garrett was leading the way in Dallas. Additionally, the current Bears coach was the passing game coordinator for the Cowboys for two years under Garrett (from 2016-17).
Garrett, who also played quarterback in the NFL for the Cowboys and New York Giants among other teams, most recently served as offensive coordinator for the Giants for all of 2020 and part of the 2021 season before getting fired in November of 2021.
The erstwhile coach had an 85-67 career record in the regular season and a 2-3 mark in postseason play as an NFL head coach, but now, Garrett has a new gig — and he’s making a few pit stops in preparation for it, including dropping and on Eberflus and company during the Bears’ training camp.
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Garrett Getting Acquainted With Several NFC North Teams
Garrett is set to make the transition from coaching in the NFL to announcing the league’s games, and he dropped by the Bears’ training camp to familiarize himself with a roster that features dozens of new faces.
According to NBC Sports’ Peter King, in addition to visiting the Bears, Garrett also made pit stops at the training camps of the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers over the course of three days “as part of his homework for the new gig.”
Garrett, who will begin his new role as an analyst for NBC’s Football Night in America this season, was also part of network’s broadcast team for USFL games, and he has had high praise for Eberflus in the past.
“He loves football,” Garrett told the Indianapolis Colts’ official website about Eberflus in 2018. “He’s an excellent teacher, he challenges the players, he brings the most out in them.”
Based on what many Bears players are saying, it’s likely Garrett witnessed a very intense practice.
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Practices Under Eberflus Have Been Intense, Players Say
Bears’ third-year tight end Cole Kmet is among the players lauding the intensity and gusto with which Eberflus brings to team practices.
“That was probably the hardest practice I’ve ever been a part of,” Kmet said on August 5. “That’s not a joke. It was a tough practice. But it’s good for us to get in shape and see how good we can execute when we’re tired at the end of it. It was a long one.”
“You definitely felt it today,” starting safety Eddie Jackson added after the same practice. “You can do two things: you can either tap out or stop and cry and complain, or you can just step up. And when you get through stuff like that, that shows what good teams are made of.”
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