Matt Eberflus during a visit to the USS Whitehat on Naval Station Great Lakes for a meet and greet event to sign autographs and take pictures with service-members, staff and their families. Chicago Bears Meet and Greet and NSGL by Joseph E. Montemarano is licensed under public domain.

The Chicago Bears have fired former head coach Matt Eberflus.

The decision came one day after the Bears lost 23-20 to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day. With just over thirty seconds left in the game, Eberflus decided not to use his final timeout and let the clock run for one final play. With the Bears facing third down and only being a few yards from field goal range, it was hard to comprehend why Eberflus chose to run one play instead of potentially two that could have sent the game into overtime.

This is not the first time the Bears have made a questionable decision late in a game this season. In the team’s week 11 game against the Green Bay Packers, Eberflus decided to run one play in the game’s last 35 seconds instead of running an extra play or two to make the field goal attempt closer for kicker Cairo Santos. The 46 yard attempt was blocked, resulting in the first of three consecutive losses by three points or less.

On the day of his firing, Eberflus was talking to reporters about how he was preparing for the Bears next game against the San Francisco 49ers on Dec. 8. After his news conference, Eberflus was fired and offensive coordinator Thomas Brown became the team’s interim head coach. With Brown being instrumental to Williams’ resurgence over the past few games, the hope is that he can do the same for the Bears as they sit on a six game losing streak.

With Eberflus fired and the Bears far out of playoff contention, the hope is that this move will accelerate the process for who will be the head coach for the 2025 season. The expectation is that the Bears will hire an offensive mind to pair with quarterback Caleb Williams in order to give him and the Bears the best chance to succeed. As the season begins to come to a close, the Bears feel more urgency than ever as these next few months will be instrumental in how the team’s long term future will play out.

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Chicago Bears football news: Matt Eberflus issues statement after head coach fired mid-season following Detroit Lions loss – ABC7 Chicago

What’s next after Bears fire head coach Matt Eberflus – ESPN