It would be one thing if the Chicago Bears lost games because their opponent was superior. While not easy to accept, it’s at least understandable. It is so much worse when it’s obvious a loss came from self-inflicted wounds. That has become an alarming trend with Matt Eberflus over the past two years. Beyond a botched challenge here and not calling a timeout there, the third-year head coach is showing signs of having poor situational awareness in tight games, almost always leading to a loss.
Last season, it was multiple 4th quarter collapses where the Bears held double-digit leads. Remember, Eberflus is supposed to be a defensive specialist. Coughing up leads like that makes him look even worse. Last Sunday against Washington might’ve been his masterpiece. In the space of two plays, Eberflus called a soft coverage that allowed a free 13-yard completion to give the Commanders a shot at the end zone. Then he refused to call timeout despite Tyrique Stevenson not paying attention on the final play, leading to confusion in their coverage.
It was another game they had in hand that Eberflus let slip away. How many more of these backbreaking losses can he survive? Courtney Cronin of ESPN spoke on the Chicago Bears Podcast about the head coach’s future. Based on her assessment, he is out if he misses the playoffs.
Matt Eberflus has almost zero margin for error.
Losing to Washington not only hurts the Bears’ chances in the race for a wild card spot, but it also means they will have to win more games in the upcoming second half of their schedule. That stretch will feature six divisional games, the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers and the NFC West-leading Seattle Seahawks. There is a real possibility that this season spirals out of control before December even hits. Head coaches are expected to win by their third season. Eberflus is up against the clock now.
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He is 14-27 during his time with the Bears. He’s 1-13 against teams with winning records and 3-17 on the road. All of this points to a coach who is mediocre at best. Matt Eberflus isn’t getting the most out of this roster, which can be traced back to poor preparation and in-game decision-making. Ryan Poles and Kevin Warren took a lot of heat from people for keeping him around this season, especially knowing the Bears would draft a new quarterback. Losses like Sunday weren’t supposed to happen anymore.
People are getting tired of underachieving. The only way to show that isn’t happening anymore is to make the playoffs. Otherwise, he’s toast.
