Matt Eberflus became the first Bears head coach in franchise history to get canned in-season. Considering the long list of questionable calls and demoralizing losses, the move didn’t come as a complete surprise…especially to those in the building.
According to Adam Jahns and Dianna Russini of The Athletic, players were especially “furious” following Chicago’s loss on Thursday. Many players questioned Eberflus’s decision not to call a timeout before the last play, with team captain Jaylon Johnson described as especially “emotional.”
“We felt as players it’s been too many instances where we fought our way back into games to lose because of bad time management and decision-making,” one player told The Athletic.
One staffer noted that the post-game locker room “was ugly” and featured “a lot of yelling.” While Eberflus tried calming down his squad with a speech, he didn’t hang around, and his players continued to fume. Eberflus’s uncharacteristic exit from the locker room could have also been due to the presence of team president Kevin Warren, who notably hung around the team much longer than usual following the Thanksgiving debacle.
The locker room outburst appeared to be coming for a long time. As The Athletic notes, Ebereflus’s recent attempts to take accountability for the team’s mounting losses appeared “insincere” and countered his differing tone from earlier in the season. While the now-former HC tried saving face by firing offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, many in the locker room believed Waldron wasn’t the right choice.
Specifically, the offensive coordinator installed a “pure progression passing system,” a concept difficult for any QB. With Caleb Williams leading the way under center, some players voiced concerns that the staff wasn’t putting the rookie in a position to succeed. It also went beyond the passing offense; Waldron scrapped “two years of progress under offensive line coach Chris Morgan” by completely revamping the team’s running attack.
“Where they messed up was with Shane and making him the coordinator to begin with,” one player told The Athletic.
Chicago had a 4-2 record heading into the bye week, and the team’s demise was a collective effort. Still, Eberflus was going to be the clear scapegoat. Curiously, Eberflus met with the media hours before his firing. The Athletic notes that Morgan, chairman George McCaskey, and GM Ryan Poles were still meeting during that scheduled press conference, and the trio didn’t want to signal that “something big was happening” by canceling Eberflus’s presser.
If there’s any silver lining, there seems to be growing optimism surrounding interim head coach Thomas Brown. The team’s former passing game coordinator was promoted to OC following Waldron’s firing. The Athletic notes that the coach’s “communication style and leadership skills earned the respect of players and staff.”