When Matt Eberflus held his weekly meeting with the Chicago Bears’ leadership council Wednesday, the coach and players had a lot to address as they picked up the pieces from the 18-15, last-second loss to the Washington Commanders.
Just two days earlier, in the wake of the defeat on Jayden Daniels’ 52-yard Hail Mary, several of the Bears’ eight captains publicly voiced questions or concerns about coaching decisions that were made in the fourth quarter.
On Wednesday, they had their weekly forum to air their concerns with Eberflus, who has faced a flurry of outside criticism for the way his defense handled the Commanders’ final drive.
“It’s just a partnership,” tight end Marcedes Lewis said. “From a player’s standpoint, we understand (the coaches) have a job to do as well, and it’s up to the captains and the leaders to understand what that climate is and be constructive about our concerns. That’s what we’ve been doing, just trying to be collaborative with what we want to get done, and I think we’ve been doing a great job.
“Obviously, it’s hard to win in this league. There’s going to be ups and downs and smiles and frowns, and you’ve just got to battle through it.”
The leadership council first came into public focus after back-to-back losses to the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts, as outside disapproval swelled against offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. Players eventually met with Waldron to share their concerns. The Bears rebounded — albeit against bad teams — with a three-game winning streak.
The Bears face another crucial stretch the next two games against beatable Arizona Cardinals and New England Patriots teams before they head into NFC North play.
Quarterback Caleb Williams called the session a “grown-man talk,” during which players and Eberflus voiced their thoughts about what went wrong.
Williams views it as a good thing that the Bears have so many opinionated, passionate veteran players who are willing to speak up.
“Something I go by myself is that OK teams, nobody leads. Good teams, the coaches lead. And the great teams, the players lead,” Williams said. “We have to find ways to be better for ourselves. There were plays in that game where we have to execute. Whether my drop is wrong or the route depth is wrong or the hand placement or your helmet isn’t across the defender’s chest so we can get him moving and cut up. There are a lot of things that players, first and foremost, can correct. You always have to look at yourself before you start pointing fingers or doing anything like that and make sure you’re doing things right.
“From there, we’re going to keep having communication and we’re going to keep getting better between the coaches and us players.”
Monday’s comments from players were significant as several voiced the thoughts of so many fans. Safety Kevin Byard said players were still emotional about the game and were wearing their hearts on their sleeves during their interviews less than 24 hours after the Hail Mary was completed.
Byard told reporters on a conference call that he spoke with Eberflus about the defensive play call on the Commanders’ second-to-last play, when the Bears defended the middle of the field and allowed a 13-yard sideline completion to Terry McLaurin, who got out of bounds.
Cornerback Jaylon Johnson wondered on WSCR-AM 670 whether the Bears should have called a timeout before the Hail Mary to be better prepared for the play.
Wide receiver DJ Moore expressed his surprise that the Bears went with a handoff to offensive lineman Doug Kramer on third-and-goal at the 1-yard line with the lead on the line in a separate 670 interview.
Tight end Cole Kmet told reporters Tyrique Stevenson’s lapse in focus on the final play was a lesson to players about what happens when they don’t respect the game, something he said was an issue in practices earlier in the week.
Eberflus said he doesn’t have a problem with players voicing their opinions respectfully but added he wants them to do it one-on-one with the other involved party.
“We have that policy that, hey, it’s open communication,” Eberflus said. “And if it’s done in the right way with respect and if it’s done in the right way in the theme of winning, about winning football, winning habits, then we’re all in for that.”
Moore said Eberflus spoke with his captains about what they say in a public forum, such as their interviews. Moore said he answered the question about the Kramer play truthfully, but going forward he probably wouldn’t say something like that in an interview.
“It’s just got to stay in-house next time,” Moore said. “I’m not going to say, ‘Sorry for what I said.’ But at the same time, it should have just stayed in-house. But I said what I said.”
The players’ public thoughts Monday came on the same day that Eberflus offered little second-guessing of his in-game decisions to reporters.
But on Wednesday, the coach attempted to explain that he is also holding himself accountable.
In his opening statement with reporters during his news conference, Eberflus made sure to note that the Bears did their usual weekly “after-action report” in which they assess the things they — including the coaching staff — did well and need to improve on. He noted it’s “all about accountability and execution, and that starts with me.”
The manner in which the Bears lost — and the decisions that led to the Commanders’ deflating last drive — has brought a lot of local and national media heat on Eberflus. So the temperature inside the building for the coach was also a topic Wednesday.
“I’m going to be the man that I’ve been and the leader I’ve been and just be steady all the way through the process,” Eberflus said when asked how he retains belief from his players. “We’re a team that’s growing, and we’re a team that’s getting better, and we’ll work through this adversity.”
But Eberflus also said to ask the players about their belief in him.
“I still believe in him as a coach,” Byard said. “I believe in him as a man. And I respect the fact that he lets us voice our opinions in these meetings and things like that. I’ve been on another team where that may not happen, where he’s open for not necessarily criticism but open feedback from players. I still respect him, and the players still believe in him. We still have a lot to play for, and we still feel like as a team and players, we’re a great team, and we’re going to be where we need to be.”
When Johnson was asked if he still believed in Eberflus, he stated matter-of-factly, “Yeah, he is our head coach.”
“That is, quite honestly, part of the job,” Johnson said. “I mean the same thing, in a sense, with the quarterback situation when everybody asked, ‘Are you behind Justin (Fields)?’ ‘He is our quarterback. He is who we are going with.’ But I mean whoever is in that position, whoever is in our locker room, whoever our coaches are, that is who we believe in. That’s who we trust to lead us to a championship.”
Coaches and players turning the page quickly to the Cardinals is the first step in getting back on track. And Moore insisted they’re ready, saying “the sky isn’t falling.”
“I mean to the media it might be falling because of how we lost or whatever,” Moore said. “But everybody here is just fine and on to getting back on a win streak.”
