The Chicago Bears didn’t receive much pushback from interim coach Thomas Brown.
Brown replaced the fired Matt Eberflus the day after Thanksgiving, but the Bears never found a spark and traveled to San Francisco where they were attacked by the 49ers.
Minnesota (11-2) welcomes Chicago heading into Monday night’s hard-fought division game against the Vikings as the Bears’ losing streak stretches to seven games.
The Vikings have won six straight games and are closing in on the Eagles and Lions in the NFC home race. Minnesota is in the playoffs, and Sunday night’s loss to the Seahawks sealed their spot. Most recently, the Vikings scored 42 points in a Week 14 home game against Atlanta.
When the Vikings are playing well, there aren’t many venues as loud as U.S. Bank Stadium.
Look for Minnesota to get off to a quick start against a Bears team with a first-year quarterback and coaching staff that is clearly in a state of flux at this point in the year.
–It’s coaching, idiot.
The Bears’ decision to fire a head coach midseason for the first time in franchise history shows just how dire things have become at Halas Hall.
The Eberflus left them with no choice after their in-game gaffe against the Lions on Thanksgiving was exposed for the whole world to see.
With 36 seconds left in the fourth quarter and Chicago leading 23-20 at Detroit’s own 41-yard line, Eberflus chose not to take a timeout on third down after quarterback Caleb Williams was sacked.
Instead, the Bears wasted 30 seconds trying to set up at the line of scrimmage and threw an incomplete pass as time expired. Therefore, they were unable to attempt the game-clinching 58-yard field goal.
After the game, Bears wide receiver Keenan Allen didn’t seem to directly blame the coaching staff, telling reporters, “We did enough as players to win this game.”
In other words, it was the players who held their end of the bargain.
Unfortunately, the debacle against the Lions was just one example of Eberflus completely exceeding his abilities as a head coach this season.
Two weeks ago in a loss to the Lions, the Bears had a chance to make the winning field goal against the Packers, but instead of making another play to shorten the kick, Eberflus ran with 27 seconds left, only for Green Bay to block it. It was. 46 yarder.
–Prop pick: Vikings pass catcher
Jordan Addison had eight catches, 162 yards, and one touchdown in Chicago’s secondary in his first game on Nov. 24 and an 8-133-3 win over the Falcons last week.
The Bears may shake things up with Eberflus no longer calling the defensive shots, but Chicago is in a similarly toxic predicament with Justin Jefferson opposite Addison. Tight end TJ Hockenson also had seven receptions against the Bears last month, and had 11 catches for 100 yards and one touchdown in two games in this matchup last season.
Quarterback Sam Darnold spread the riches in this game, with Jefferson and Addison each recording six receptions, with Addison going for over 60 yards.
Prop: 2 bets parlaid: Addison 6+ Receptions, Addison 60+ Receiving Yards (+248 FanDuel)
–Bears coach not ready
Before the Bears fired Eberflus, he fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. Last season, they fired offensive coordinator Luke Getsy.
Thomas Brown, who took over as coordinator from Waldron, is the interim head coach.
The Bears’ performance on the field certainly warranted some changes, but this revolving door of coordinators and head coaches isn’t particularly beneficial to the rookie quarterback.
There are legitimate concerns about the coaching staff’s ability to prepare midweek and plan early in the game.
Out of all 32 teams, the Bears average 7.4 points in the first half, the third-fewest points, and on the road their average drops to 4.7 points.
Given the coaching merry-go-round and staff members being promoted to new positions to fill vacancies, one can’t help but wonder if there is a lack of quality due to inexperience.
And the Bears have yet to cover the first half of each of their six road games this season, so it will be tough to turn the tide against a quality Vikings team on Monday night.
Best bet: Vikings 1H -3.5 (-115 DraftKings)
–Michael Nwaneri, Field Level Media
