Don't look now but Matt Eberflus has the #1 ranked defense in the NFL.
Indianapolis Colts Defense Rankings:
- 236.3 yds/game (1st)
- 14 pts/game (1st)
- 7 interceptions (1st)
The Colts D has allowed 56 pts total in four games. We allowed 49 pts just yesterday.
This is turning into Sean Payton all over again. He'll probably be a head coach next season.
In 2011, Eberflus followed Rob Ryan to the
Dallas Cowboys, joining the staff of head coach
Jason Garrett as the Linebacker Coach. The linebacker group was spearheaded at the time by All-Pro
DeMarcus Ware. In Eberflus' first season, Ware registered 19.5 sacks, good for second in the NFC and the NFL and tops amongst all linebackers in the NFL en route to his sixth consecutive selection as a Pro Bowl starter. Eberflus also helped with the continued development of second-year linebacker
Sean Lee, who lead the team with 131 tackles (91 solo) and tied for the team-lead with four interceptions, the most by any NFL linebacker in 2011. Eberflus' linebacker unit produced five of Dallas' top-10 tacklers and three of the top-five.
After being sought after for various defensive coordinator positions around the league, the Cowboys were able to keep Eberflus in house in 2016 and made him the team's Defensive Passing Game Coordinator, in addition to his linebacker coach duties. Eberflus helped the Cowboys defense boast the NFL's No. 1 overall rushing defense (83.5 yards per game) in 2016, and the No. 5 ranked scoring defense. Sean Lee led the defense with 175 tackles (120 solo) and 12.0 tackles for loss, both career highs, and was named First Team All-Pro and selected to his second consecutive Pro Bowl.
In 2017, Eberflus guided a linebacker group that accounted for 34% of the team's tackles, helping the defense rank No. 8 in total defense (318.1 yards per game) and rushing defense (104.0 yards per game), and the No. 11 passing defense (214.1 yards per game). Most impressively, Eberflus was credited with the development of
Jaylon Smith to become an immediate contributor after missing the 2016 season due to an injury he suffered in his final collegiate game at Notre Dame. In his first year on the field, Smith played in all 16 games, starting in six of them, tallying 81 tackles (50 solo), 3.0 tackles for loss, 1.0 sack, two passes defensed and two forced fumbles. In total, Eberflus' linebacker trio of Sean Lee (101 tackles), Anthony Hitchens (84 tackles) and Jaylon Smith (81 tackles) finished as the Cowboys' top-three tacklers. Both Lee and Smith have credited Eberflus for helping them excel at their positions.
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