CHICAGO — Whereas Chicago Bears gamers gathered their belongings contained in the guests locker room at Ford Area on Thanksgiving afternoon, workforce president and CEO Kevin Warren hung round longer than regular.
Warren stood close to quarterback Caleb Williams’ locker and spoke at size with Ted Crews, the Bears’ particular adviser and chief administrative officer who spent a decade with Chicago normal supervisor Ryan Poles in Kansas Metropolis. Warren talked with a handful of gamers one after the other as they headed towards the buses after one other embarrassing loss fueled by questionable teaching selections, this time 23-20 to the Detroit Lions.
“We have to be higher,” Warren advised the gamers, in keeping with a workforce supply. Warren assured them he was dedicated to seeing that by.
The Bears had fought again from a 16-0 halftime deficit, however time ran out on their remaining drive, which reached the Detroit 41. After Williams was sacked with about 30 seconds remaining, coach Matt Eberflus didn’t name his remaining timeout to arrange a possible tying discipline aim. It was the Bears’ sixth straight loss.
Hypothesis about Eberflus’ job safety had been rising since a tipped Hail Mary in Washington a month prior sparked the Bears’ shedding skid. One in all his greatest shortcomings was the Bears’ lack of ability to complete video games. Eberflus’ 5-19 report in one-score video games is the worst in NFL historical past for a coach with not less than 20 such video games, and it featured a number of uncommon endings. The conclusion of his Bears tenure was no much less unusual.
As gamers filed into the locker room after the loss, Eberflus started delivering a message that fell on deaf ears. The tone, in keeping with one participant, spoke to how gamers battled and got here up brief. As Eberflus spoke, an exasperated Jaylon Johnson interrupted his head coach and started shouting obscenities out of frustration from the identical outcomes taking part in out time and again.
Eberflus lower his message brief and walked out of the room.
“There was frustration,” Johnson mentioned Monday on WSCR radio in Chicago. “There was phrases from myself that I expressed simply from my frustration from shedding.”
Johnson, a second-team All-Professional cornerback, has but to expertise a profitable season since being drafted by the Bears in 2020. Johnson was stoic as he sat at his locker when the media entered the room, an entire departure from his temper minutes earlier than.
“A part of what I mentioned after the sport was I have been shedding for 5 years,” Johnson mentioned on WSCR. “I really feel like a high-level participant like myself, after a sure level, shedding video games how we have been shedding video games, any individual has to specific one thing. It was a spur-of-the-moment factor, and it went the way in which it went.”
One workforce supply mentioned Eberflus’ message was “seconds,” and that the vibe of the room was “contentious. It was totally different. Gamers had been telling the reality.”
One participant’s categorization of what transpired: “s— present.”
Bears nickel nook Kyler Gordon fielded questions in entrance of his locker concerning the uncommon methods the Bears misplaced through the ongoing streak. When requested for the underlying motive, Gordon declined.
“Subsequent query,” Gordon mentioned. “No remark.”
One other participant advised ESPN that whereas he believed Eberflus had the fitting intentions, the message grew to become redundant and wasn’t touchdown.
“You solely need to hear it a lot,” tight finish Cole Kmet mentioned. “Coach goes to say what he will say.
“On the finish of the day, all of us notice we would like the outcomes. We simply have not had the outcomes. That falls upon everyone.”
Warren’s presence within the postgame locker room is routine at Soldier Area and on the highway, however issues felt totally different this time. There was a rising sense change was coming.
The next afternoon, Eberflus was fired — the primary head coach in franchise historical past to be fired throughout a season — however not earlier than one other twist. On Friday morning, when many anticipated Poles to announce a training change, Eberflus performed his regular day-after-game information convention by way of Zoom. He mentioned he was assured he could be teaching the Bears the next week in San Francisco. A number of hours later, ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the information of his ouster, adopted by the workforce issuing a information launch.
“On reflection, might we’ve achieved it higher? Completely,” Warren mentioned Monday, “and I will be the primary one to boost my hand, sure.”
BEARS DIRECTOR OF participant personnel Trey Koziol erupted from his seat within the press field when a defensive cross interference penalty gave Chicago a primary down on the Lions’ 25-yard line with 56 seconds remaining.
With 36 seconds left, the Bears tried to run a draw play on second-and-20, however edge rusher Za’Darius Smith blew previous proper deal with Larry Borom — who entered the sport after starter Darnell Wright was carted off with an harm — to sack Williams for a 6-yard loss.
There have been 32 seconds remaining when Williams hit the bottom. The Bears had one timeout left.
Eberflus mentioned postgame and once more Friday that the Bears had hoped to run a play that might have gone to Kmet or extensive receiver Rome Odunze with 18 seconds remaining earlier than utilizing their final timeout to kick a discipline aim.
However no timeout was known as, a call that left gamers shocked.
“We observe these conditions on a regular basis,” extensive receiver Keenan Allen mentioned. “I really feel like we did sufficient, although we had been going backwards [because of penalties] a few these performs down within the pink zone. We’ll say if we do not have these penalties, we most likely rating. However with these penalties, we nonetheless ought to have a discipline aim [attempt].”
Internally, the truth that no timeout was known as raised questions among the many entrance workplace and training workers over in-game administration, workforce sources mentioned. Whereas the choice to name timeouts, throw a problem flag or go for it on fourth down finally rests on the top coach, Eberflus’ headset permits him to speak with coaches upstairs within the sales space, together with these on workers chargeable for sport administration selections.
“There is a system that is broke and wasn’t fastened,” a workforce supply mentioned.
Williams mentioned he might have known as a timeout, however after calling one earlier within the drive, the 23-year-old rookie mentioned he did not really feel comfy doing it once more. Because the clock wound down, he knew there could be time for just one extra play, so he modified the play to a deep cross to Odunze, nevertheless it fell incomplete.
“Possibly within the later years of my profession [I’ll call a timeout],” Williams mentioned, “however proper now, I get the decision, I am making an attempt to guide the blokes to win, and I am making an attempt to get everyone lined up and from there I am making an attempt to make a play for the Chicago Bears.”
AT THE END of Warren’s first season with the Minnesota Vikings in 2005, the workforce’s brass met with coach Mike Tice shortly after a win towards the Bears. Regardless of the victory, the Vikings had been eradicated from playoff competition, and Tice was fired within the locker room. That transfer by no means sat nicely with Warren. “I’ve simply realized over my profession that it is necessary to attempt to not less than get a great night time’s sleep, which I do not assume any of us did Thursday night time, however not less than attempt to assume clearer and be respectful to make higher selections,” Warren mentioned Monday. Warren, Poles and workforce chairman George McCaskey met Friday morning at Halas Corridor round 7 a.m. to debate Eberflus’ future. The Bears had been conscious of Eberflus’ repeatedly scheduled day-after-game media availability that was set to happen two hours later, however their assembly continued till they arrived at a call. As one workforce supply advised ESPN, it wasn’t simply the losses, it was what the long run seemed like. They needed to consider Williams’ efficiency the remainder of the season and whether or not staying with Eberflus would hinder his growth as a franchise quarterback. With Williams surrounded by improved offensive playmakers, the 2024 season was purported to be the 12 months Chicago took main steps ahead, however a 19-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Nov. 10 — the third loss through the streak — appeared like a breaking level, in keeping with a workforce supply. The Bears “seemed like a nasty soccer workforce, and that is not what we’re,” the supply mentioned. The loss to the Patriots was adopted by three way more aggressive outings, a 20-19 loss to the Packers through which the Bears had a 46-yard discipline aim blocked after opting to not go for extra yardage, an time beyond regulation loss on the Vikings, then the Thanksgiving Day meltdown. Three losses that simply might have been wins. Because the Bears brass deliberated, Eberflus went on along with his regular media availability. He had caught warmth for saying after the sport that issues had been dealt with “the fitting method” within the remaining sequence, and he doubled down Friday, explaining why he believed that. “Our determination at that time was to be on the ball, maintain our timeout and get the play off at 15 to 10 seconds, in that vary, throw it into discipline aim vary there after which name a timeout after which kick the sport[-tying field goal] on fourth down,” Eberflus mentioned. “The operation wasn’t quick sufficient, and we did not do a great job of executing there in that second.” His information convention had “zero” to do along with his firing, per a workforce supply. After Poles, Warren and McCaskey had been achieved assembly, Eberflus was fired. Eberflus met along with his workers round 11 a.m. CT to tell them of the choice. EBERFLUS HAD PLANNED to offer his workers the weekend off following Thursday’s loss. After Thomas Brown realized he was being promoted from interim offensive coordinator to interim head coach, he had one query. “Do I’ve any obligations this weekend?” Brown mentioned. Brown had a 4 p.m. flight to Miami to spend time along with his spouse, Jessica, and three sons, whom he had not seen in over a month and a half. He mentioned going house for a belated Thanksgiving, and to spend time along with his household, was what he wanted to recharge earlier than taking on teaching duties for the ultimate 5 video games. “He is the true deal,” one entrance workplace supply mentioned of Brown. Brown will proceed to name performs and transition from the coaches sales space to the sideline. His function in Williams’ growth has been noticeable. Brown changed the fired Shane Waldron on Nov. 12, and Williams has thrown 5 touchdowns over the previous two video games after not throwing one within the earlier 4. Williams additionally has thrown 232 consecutive passes with out a choose, which is the longest streak by a rookie in NFL historical past. With 5 video games left, the Bears can have an opportunity to judge Brown however don’t need to view these video games as an audition, a workforce supply mentioned. Seeing how the workforce performs and competes carries weight, however the workforce can be conscious of the scenario Brown has been put in by taking on late within the season whereas operating an offense that isn’t his. Two workforce sources advised ESPN that Brown shall be thought of among the many candidates in January because the Bears start their teaching search. Different names the Bears hope to interview embody Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and Washington Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury, the latter of whom interviewed for the Bears’ offensive coordinator opening earlier than the workforce employed Waldron. In his weekly radio look on WSCR, extensive receiver DJ Moore mentioned Poles advised him the Bears would goal for a coach who’s “a frontrunner of males.” What Poles noticed in that locker room on Thanksgiving Day satisfied him Eberflus was not that chief. “We had been all pissed off,” Poles mentioned. “Anytime the place you get to a scenario like that, the place you may’t end a sport with a win — and it had been just a few weeks there, I feel everybody was pissed off. “I noticed frustration.”
