The Chicago Bears did something unprecedented on Friday when they fired head coach Matt Eberflus, and the team’s leadership is explaining why it was the “right time” to make the move.
Eberflus lost his final six games as Bears head coach, including three consecutive one-score losses to NFC North opponents, and became the first head coach in team history to be fired in the middle of a season.
It was those losses, including the bizarre handling of the clock at the end of Thursday’s game against the Detroit Lions, that ultimately caused Bears’ leadership to make the change.
“When you look at the end of the game situations (and) some of the detailing to finish in those moments. We all know a lot of these games come down to those critical sports that we weren’t able to get over the hump,” Poles said during a Monday press conference.
Eberflus’ 5-19 record in one-score games was the worst in NFL history among coaches with at least 20 games under their belts, and there was concern that players in the locker room were becoming disillusioned with the coach’s handling of critical situations.
Warren acknowledged Monday that it “wasn’t an easy decision” to fire Eberflus, but conceded that it was the “right time” and that having interim head coach Thomas Brown in the building helped convince the leadership team that a transition was needed.
“Thomas is incredibly bright,” he said. “He’s hard-working. He’s grown up around the game. He’s talented. He has great leadership capabilities. He’s decisive, and he’s clear. I’m excited to watch him lead our football team.”
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Warren also said that giving themselves a head start on what will be a critical decision in the trajectory of the Bears’ organization was a key consideration in the process.
“These next five-to-six weeks are critical, and you hate saying the decisions are going to set the trajectory of the franchise over the next 10-to-15-to-20 years, (but) this is one that will,” Warren said. “It is critically important that we put all of our energy into making sure that we exhaust this search, get the right person here, build this community.”
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It was that view toward the future that is ultimately motivating Warren and Poles in their search for a new coach, and the team is looking forward rather than at previous results as they prepare for the final stretch run of the season.
“Let’s put the past in the past. Let’s start today and go forward and work together because I don’t want to burn any energy on what’s happened in the past,” Warren said.
