Caleb Williams, more Bears players, deflect blame in postgame interviews after late-game collapse vs. Lions

Dan Treacy

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Caleb Williams, more Bears players, deflect blame in postgame interviews after late-game collapse vs. Lions image

The Bears' six-game losing streak has included some of the most bizarre and painful losses possible, from a Jayden Daniels Hail Mary to a blocked field goal. On Thanksgiving, Chicago found a brand new way to lose.

What looked like a game-tying drive at the very least went off the rails when the Bears refused to use a timeout after Caleb Williams was sacked in the fourth quarter. Rather than using a timeout and running a play to position themselves for a field goal, Chicago let the clock run all the way down to the final seconds.

By the time Williams' third-and-26 pass fell incomplete, the clock had hit zero. The Bears lost 23-20 to the Lions, falling to 4-8 on the season.

While some questioned Williams' awareness, most of the blame from fans was directed toward coach Matt Eberflus and the coaching staff for not stepping in and calling timeout when they could.

After the game, Bears players and Eberflus seemed to blame everyone but themselves.

Here's a look at what players and coaches had to say about the Bears' disastrous final sequence in Detroit.

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Bears players respond to disastrous finish vs. Lions

Bears players had mixed messages after Thursday's loss, but the consensus was clear: they weren't sure why the game ended the way it did.

"I think we as players did enough to win," WR Keenan Allen told reporters, seemingly placing blame on the coaching staff for the defeat.

WR DJ Moore similarly put some blame on the coaching staff without saying it directly, telling reporters, "I don't know why we didn't take a timeout."

Even Williams didn't rush to take accountability despite letting all of that time come off the clock at the end of the game. The rookie said he was "living with the call and letting coaches make that decision" regarding a timeout.

Eberflus, meanwhile, said he wanted to run a quick play and then use his final timeout, hinting at miscommunication between himself and his rookie quarterback.

As for a breakdown in communication, Williams said there wasn't much communication with Eberflus in that moment. "I don't have a microphone to speak to coach or anything like that," he said.

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Other Bears were baffled by the sequence, as well, with TE Cole Kmet nearly speechless about what led to the clock running out. "Honestly ... I don't even know," he told reporters, adding that the Bears ultimately need to avoid taking a sack in that situation.

Asked why he thinks the Bears keep losing games, CB Kyler Gordon shook his head and told reporters, "Next question. No comment."

Losing is one way for a coach to get fired, but losing the trust of the players is a much quicker way. Comments by players after Thursday's loss certainly raise questions about how much respect Eberflus commands in the locker room, even if he wasn't directly called out by anyone.

    Matt Eberflus addresses Bears' late-game collapse

    Eberflus struck both chords in his postgame press conference, telling reporters that accountability "starts with me" but expressing little regret about the messy final sequence of the game.

    "I like what we did there ... I think we handled it the right way," Eberflus said, explaining that he wanted to run a play and then call a timeout before attempting a field goal.

    On one hand, the logic works. Moving quickly and running a play with a timeout in hand would allow the Bears to use the entire field knowing they could definitely stop the clock. Once Eberflus recognized that Williams and the offense weren't prepared to run a quick play, however, there was little choice but to use the timeout and preserve some time even if the situation wasn't ideal.

    Eberflus decided against the timeout, and the Bears never got the chance to try even a long-range field goal. As Eberflus fights for his job, comments that many might perceive as tone-deaf about that final sequence will only add to the pressure the third-year coach is facing.

    Dan Treacy

    Dan Treacy Photo

    Dan Treacy is a content producer for Sporting News, joining in 2022 after graduating from Boston University. He founded @allsportsnews on Instagram in 2012 and has written for Lineups and Yardbarker.