The Chicago Bears have fired head coach Matt Eberflus following a disastrous loss to the Detroit Lions, the team announced Friday.
Eberflus was in his third season with the Bears, and had an overall record of 14-32.
The Bears lost Thursday to the Lions by a score of 23-20. With the team in position to attempt a field goal that could have tied the game late in the fourth quarter, quarterback Caleb Williams was sacked with 32 seconds left.
With a timeout in hand, Eberflus just watched as the rookie quarterback slowly tried to get the team into position before finally throwing an incomplete pass on the final play of the game.
“The goal was to get the third down with 18 seconds left, throw inside the lines, take the timeout, then position yourself for the field goal,” Eberflus defended after the game. That was our mentality. We were too far away for a field goal attempt, so we had to go for a few more yards, get as close as possible, and that’s why we were going to save the last timeout for the occasion. I’m disappointed for the players, they worked hard during a short week of preparation, and they put themselves in a position to win. »
“I was focused on bringing everyone back (to the line of scrimmage), Williams explained. I don’t have a microphone, so there’s no communication with the head coach on the sidelines. We could have taken a timeout, but if we had made that play, no one would be talking about it. »
This is the first time in franchise history that the Bears have fired a coach in the middle of the season. The loss, the sixth in a row, brought the Bears’ record to 4-8 this season, ending any hopes of qualifying for the playoffs.
