The Chicago Bears continued their season of suffering with a close loss to the Detroit Lions on Thursday. Trailing 23-20 with less than a minute left in the game, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams failed to make a play, resulting in a sack on second down. Despite having a timeout, the Bears did not use it and attempted to run another play quickly to set up a game-tying field goal. However, they were slow in getting to the line of scrimmage, causing the clock to expire. Head coach Matt Eberflus acknowledged the mistake in his postgame conference, attributing the decision to not calling a timeout earlier to a desire to rerack and get a play in bounds. Eberflus’ poor record in close games further fueled criticism of his coaching decisions on social media. Former NFL players and analysts expressed frustration with the Bears’ repeated close losses and Eberflus’ handling of critical situations. The Bears now hold a 4-8 record after their sixth consecutive loss, while the Lions improved to 11-1, the best in the NFL. The game was characterized by a pattern of unfortunate events for the Bears throughout the 2024 season, including a Hail Mary loss, blocked game-tying field goals, and a loss to the league’s worst team. Former NFL QB Matt Ryan criticized Eberflus, calling the situation unacceptable and emphasizing the importance of not panicking in crucial moments as a head coach.
Photo credit
www.nbcnews.com
