Bears head coach Matt Eberflus is denying the widespread talk that defensive coordinator Alan Williams resigned over something a lot more serious than family and health reasons.
Eberflus says he assured his players that the rumors flying around Williams aren’t true.
“When the news came out and all those crazy things were being said, I felt we needed to clarify,” Eberflus told NFL.com on Saturday.
Eberflus says he kept things in-house and explained the situation to the team.
“I said, hey all those rumors and stuff going on right now, that crazy stuff, none of that is true,” Eberflus said. “‘Alan is resigning,’ and I said, ‘We’ll be keeping all the same responsibilities on defense and I’ll be calling the plays on game day. Any questions?’ It was better that way, with fewer people in the room. It took me more time, but that’s the way I wanted to do it.”
Eberflus didn’t actually explain which “crazy stuff” he was denying, but Pat McAfee reported on ESPN that the FBI raided Williams’ house. The Bears have denied that there was a law enforcement raid of the team facility connected to Williams, but the team did not say anything about Williams’ house being raided.
If Williams actually resigned for family and health reasons, a fair question to Eberflus, his boss, would be why the Bears didn’t let Williams keep his job but put him on family and medical leave while he resolved whatever family and health issues he’s currently facing. Eberflus is likely to continue facing questions until there’s some kind of official verification about what is true with Williams, and what is just crazy rumors.