The loosing continues for the Chicago Bears. But we knew this mess was bigger than one coach could fix.
This team has a lot of issues up and down the roster and it was hard to believe that a switch would be flipped with just jettisoning the incompetent coach.
But here we are and now there are very real concerns (and game tape evidence) that players are checking out.
That will only make things worse as the team tries to get to the end of a season from hell. There are four games left, all against teams with playoff hopes. It’s could get very ugly.
Let’s dive into this week’s rankings.
WCG - Aaron Leming
24. Chicago Bears (4-9) Previous Week: 23
With Matt Eberflus out as head coach, most had expected the dead-cat bounce that comes with an interim head coach. Well, that didn’t happen. This was the worst overall performance we’ve seen this season. The season is clearly over, but most of the roster appears checked out. Onto the coaching search!
The Athletic - Josh Kendall
24. Chicago Bears (23) Remember when everyone had a good laugh because Caleb Williams texted Taylor after the draft to tell him that he wasn’t going to be punting much? Oh, well. Taylor is punting 4.85 times per game, the second-most in the league this season and the 12th-most since 2015. The problem is he’s not doing it that well. He’s 19th in net punting (41.6 yards per kick). Still, he’s a standout on a team when nothing else is going right. He averaged 52.7 yards yards on six punts Sunday.
NFL.com - Eric Edholm
24. Chicago Bears (23) So, firing Matt Eberflus was not the cure-all the Bears might have been hoping for. Thomas Brown’s interim coaching debut was a huge dud, thanks to a brutal first half on both sides of the ball. The offense was bad. The defense was arguably worse, although that unit at least forced one punt early. It’s easy to say a team needs to fire a coach; what’s harder is getting better after that happens. Brown figures to be in consideration for the full-time head-coaching job, but his first outing doesn’t bode well for his chances, unless there’s a quick turnaround. The team that took the Lions to the brink on Thanksgiving looked completely feckless against a Niners squad that was missing some significant offensive talent. Chicago has now recorded seven straight losses, and there’s no obvious win left on the schedule. Brown likely needs to pull a few upsets down the stretch; if Sunday was any indication, it’s not super likely.
Diane Lee - The Ringer
22. Chicago Bears (22) The firings of head coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron were necessary moves for this franchise in the long term, but now there are few eyes left tending to the development of Caleb Williams and overseeing the design of the Bears offense. Without as many cooks in the kitchen, this passing game will inevitably get simpler every week, meaning a mediocre defense like San Francisco’s can aggressively take away the concepts Williams likes most. On Sunday, the result was the ugliest offensive performance we’ve seen from any team all season.
The rest of the schedule is rough for Chicago, so I don’t see things getting better. Williams will need to put his cape on if there’s any hope of keeping things relatively on track.
CBSSports - Pete Prisco
22. Chicago Bears (22) So much for the idea that firing Matt Eberflus would get this thing turned around. They were even worse in the loss to the 49ers.
PFT - Mike Florio
24. Bears (No. 24; 4-9): Well, at least they didn’t lose because of horrible late-game clock management.
Yahoo Sports - Frank Schwab
24. Chicago Bears (22) The Bears were awful on Sunday. How about one positive: Rome Odunze had two touchdowns. He had one in Chicago’s first 12 games. Odunze, the ninth pick of this year’s draft, has had a quiet rookie season. A good finish would be a promising sign for 2025 and beyond.
What do you think of this week’s rankings? Do the Bears have any chance of climbing them or will they only continue to go down?