Why the 49ers Hired Matt Eberflus as their Assistant Head Coach

The 49ers just added a ton of experience to their coaching staff.

Matt Eberflus is their new assistant head coach of defense, according to the NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Eberflus replaces Gus Bradley, last season’s assistant head coach who recently followed former 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh to the Tennessee Titans.

Eberflus was the Chicago Bears’ head coach from 2022 to 2024. In those three seasons, his record was 14-32. Now, he will join newly hired defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, who was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2009 to 2011, and then was the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons from 2024 to 2025.

Which means the 49ers have added two former head coaches to their staff this offseason, although neither was particularly good. Morris’ career record is 37-56.

As recently as 2021, Eberflus was considered a cutting-edge defensive coordinator. That’s when he was with the Indianapolis Colts. Then, he became the Bears’ head coach in 2022. And in his first season on the job, his defense gave up the most points of any team in the league. Two years later, he got fired after going 5-12.

In 2025, the Bears’ first season after firing Eberflus, they won 12 games and lost in the divisional round of the playoffs. Meanwhile, Eberflus got hired by the Dallas Cowboys to be their defensive coordinator. Once again, his defense ranked dead last in points allowed, and so he got fired after just one season. Now, he’s not a defensive coordinator anymore. He essentially is in the 49ers’ assistant-coach rehabilitation program. He’s hoping to get his career back on track.

The good news for the 49ers is that Eberflus is just an assistant head coach, meaning he will not call plays. Instead, he’ll help Morris game plan and offer Morris suggestions he can take or leave. The 49ers might even allow Eberflus to address the team once a week and tell stories. That’s what Bradley did last season.

The bad news for the 49ers is that Morris and Eberflus combined can’t make up for the loss of Robert Saleh, who truly is an elite defensive mind. Morris’ track record is mediocre, while Eberflus’ is even worse. And those two run completely different defensive schemes, so it will be interesting to see how well they work together.

Still, the 49ers had to hire someone to replace Saleh and Bradley, and at least the replacements have experience.