The final hours of Matt Eberflus’ tenure as head coach of the Chicago Bears reportedly turned ‘ugly’ as emotions boiled over in the locker room following the team’s heartbreaking Thanksgiving loss to the Detroit Lions. The Bears suffered a 23-20 defeat to the Lions in a game that came down to a critical last-play mishap.
With the play clock running down to zero, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams threw the ball downfield, despite Chicago still having a timeout available. The poor time management and confusion in the final moments proved to be the tipping point for the Bears’ leadership, who decided to part ways with Eberflus shortly thereafter.
This decision marked a historic moment, as Eberflus became the first head coach in Chicago Bears history to be fired mid-season. Now, new details are emerging about the incidents that led to his dismissal and the circumstances that made his departure inevitable.
According to The Athletic, tensions ran high in the Bears’ locker room after the game. Eberflus tried to address the team, urging them to “stick together” during his post-game speech. However, his attempts to rally the players were met with an atmosphere described as ‘ugly’ and ‘frustrated,’ with multiple players visibly angry.
The locker room quickly descended into chaos, with ‘a lot of yelling’ as players vented their frustrations over yet another disappointing loss, much of which they attributed to ‘bad time-management and decision-making’ from the coaching staff.
Team captain Jaylon Johnson was one of the most vocal players in the aftermath of the defeat. Sources described Johnson as having gone ‘crazy’ during the post-game turmoil, with another player noting that the cornerback was ’emotional and p****d but rightfully so.’ Johnson’s anger was primarily directed at Eberflus, reflecting the growing dissatisfaction within the team about the head coach’s leadership and strategic choices.
Jaylon Johnson wasn’t the only player who expressed discontent. According to reports, a number of players and staff members were ‘furious,’ with one member of the organization describing the collective frustration as ‘an accumulation of this season.’ The emotional outbursts were so intense that Eberflus left the locker room immediately after the heated exchanges, unable to quell the growing unrest among his team.
The situation ultimately culminated in the Bears deciding to part ways with Eberflus, who left the team sitting at the bottom of the NFC North with a 4-8 record. The loss to the Lions marked Chicago’s sixth consecutive defeat, making it clear that changes were necessary. However, reports suggest that the issues within the team had been festering long before the Thanksgiving game.
According to sources, the frustrations with the coaching staff had been ‘bubbling’ since the offseason. Many players were reportedly unhappy with the direction the team was heading under new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron.
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Waldron, who joined the Bears before the season, implemented significant changes to Chicago’s run game, which some team leaders felt were detrimental to the development of rookie quarterback Caleb Williams.
Waldron’s system, they believed, failed to cater to Williams’ strengths, limiting his potential and putting the offense in difficult situations.
One player summed up the sentiment by telling The Athletic, “Where they messed up was with Shane and making him the coordinator to begin with.” The decision to bring Waldron onboard appeared to have been a misstep that exacerbated the struggles of an already faltering offense. The dissatisfaction with Waldron reached its peak in mid-November, and the Bears ultimately fired him on November 12, making him the first offensive coordinator in Bears history to be let go mid-season.
With Eberflus and Waldron now both gone, the Bears face a period of transition as they try to salvage what’s left of their season.
The firing of Eberflus was seen as a necessary move by the team’s hierarchy, who hope that a change in leadership can reinvigorate the players and set the franchise on a better path. However, it remains to be seen whether the turmoil in the locker room and the frustrations of the players can be resolved quickly enough to make a difference in the remainder of the season.
As the Bears look ahead, it’s clear that the upheaval in recent weeks has left deep wounds within the organization. The hope now is that with new leadership, Chicago can move past the ‘ugly’ end of Eberflus’ reign and begin to rebuild a culture of unity and success.
