Bears coach Matt Eberflus explains why Chicago didn’t use a timeout at the end of the game against the Lions

The Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus on November 29th.

Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus addressed the time management that led to his team running a single play despite a timeout in the final 32 seconds of a 23-20 Thanksgiving loss to the Detroit Lions.

“Our hope was that we would restart the game after 18 seconds, throw it in the ball, get it into field goal range and then call the timeout,” Eberflus told reporters after the game. “There it was and that was our decision-making process on it.

“We were out of field goal range and we had to get a few more yards as close as we could and then we wanted to call a timeout and that’s why we called that last timeout at the end of the game.” Disappointment for the players. They put in a lot of work in a short week and put themselves in a position to win this game.”

On Friday, as speculation grew about Eberflus being fired, the coach appeared at a video press conference as planned. “It was business as usual” in Halas Hall, he said, as coaches watched film and began preparing for the 49ers in Week 14.

Eberflus said he had several conversations with general manager Ryan Poles and team president/CEO Kevin Warren as part of his typical postgame “debriefing.” But he said he would speak to them again later in the day.

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With 3:31 left in the fourth quarter and trailing by a field goal Thursday, Chicago got the ball back at its own 1-yard line and Caleb Williams drove the team to the Lions’ 25 before the drive stalled. Williams was sacked at the Lions’ 41-yard line with 32 seconds left. The Bears elected not to use their final timeout as time expired and Williams made the final play with six seconds left – an incomplete pass across the field to Rome Odunze.

A wild ending to this one. #CHIvsDET pic.twitter.com/zwR7g1Efv9

– NFL (@NFL) November 28, 2024

Eberflus noted that given the team was on third down, he wanted the timeout to use it for the kick on fourth down.

“It’s a situation where you bring the game in, grab the ball, pass it and call a timeout,” Eberflus said. “We all agreed on that. We just have to do a little better.”

Williams expressed his perspective and explained why he made an adjustment to the line as time went on.

“I don’t have a microphone to talk to the coach or anything like that,” Williams said. “There wasn’t a lot of communication. In that situation, you get a call at that point, you have to try to get the guys back, get everyone lined up so you can make a play.

“We lined up, got the play and I made an adjustment because I saw the clock ticking down because I knew if we put a ball in or something like that, we’re not going to have time to kick a field goal bring. I made an adjustment and knew Rome (Odunze) was either going to play one-on-one or he was going to get past the safety and be there one-on-one and try to give him a chance. We got the shot and missed it.”

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Tight end Cole Kmet added: “All of a sudden I see everyone come on the field and the game is over. So I was like, “What the hell just happened?”… I’m sure the thought at the time was to get a certain distance, then take a timeout, and then kick the field goal. But we were a little late. And then that was the last piece.”

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The loss to Detroit was the team’s sixth straight loss of the season – a stretch that began with the “Hail Mary” loss at Washington. The loss was also the third straight in the NFC North – with the three division losses totaling seven points.

“We have to find a way to win,” said wide receiver DJ Moore, who added he wasn’t sure why a timeout wasn’t called. “We keep coming back in these games and we have time to actually win the game and we just make the bed.”

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Eberflus, who is in his third season as head coach, has a 14-32 record leading the team. Earlier this month, the team changed offensive coordinators to revitalize a unit that had struggled for most of the season. Nevertheless, he knows that the money stays with him.

“I’m the head football coach, so of course I take the blame,” Eberflus said of the loss. “That’s what you do. We didn’t make it. It starts at the top and it starts right here. Responsibility is just right for me. We have to do better. I have to do better. I was proud of the boys and the way they fought. They did a good job putting themselves in the right position.”

When asked if he feared he could be fired after this loss, Eberflus said: “I’ll just keep grinding and working. That’s what I do.”

— Adam Jahns contributed to this story

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(Photo: Mike Mulholland/Getty Images)