The Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus on Friday, a day after their late time management blunders in their 23-20 loss to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day.
The loss dropped Chicago to 4-8, likely knocking them out of playoff contention save for a miraculous run, but it also gives the team an early edge in finding a new coach, which is one of the reasons they decided to make the change now, according to NFL Network.
Nevertheless, the Bears’ officials still had Eberflus speak to the media hours before his firing, according to Tom Pelissero.
According to the report, the Bears’ brain trust of George McCaskey (chairperson), Kevin Warren (president) and Ryan Poles (general manager) had just started holding a meeting that lasted “multiple hours.”
The meeting went on at the same time as Eberflus’ presser, which was set for its regularly scheduled time.
Pelissero notes that if the presser was delayed, it likely would have meant a change had been decided, but the belief was the decision was made during the meeting, which concluded well after what became Eberflus’ final address.
Eberflus, who was 14-32 during his tenure with the Bears, was fired before he could finish his third full season as the team’s coach.
The noted defensive mind was hired in 2022 following a stint as the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive coordinator from 2018 to 2021.
He had was the Dallas Cowboys linebackers coach from 2011-2017.
The Bears’ next game is against the San Francisco 49ers on Dec. 8.
Former NFL running back Thomas Brown will serve as interim head coach.
Brown was hired in January to be the team’s pass game coordinator and was promoted to offensive coordinator after Shane Waldron’s firing as previous offensive coordinator more than two weeks ago.
