Bear Digest

What Reports of Bears Postgame Anger Can Do for Thomas Brown

Analysis: If the Bears were as angry when they got to the locker room after Thursday's finish as reports suggest, it could mean one of two things ahead for Thomas Brown.

Gene Chamberlain

While the Lions celebrated with turkey after Thursday's game, Bears players reportedly reacted angrily to their blown chance.
While the Lions celebrated with turkey after Thursday's game, Bears players reportedly reacted angrily to their blown chance. / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
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Some of the reports postgame from Thursday's Bears Motown madness detail a scene of discontent, even revolt.

This does not include descriptions how fast and urgent Ryan Poles and Kevin Warren seemed to get up and exit their box after the end-of-game meltdown. They had to do that. Everyone must at Ford Field.

Anyone who has been at Ford Field knows you need to be the first one at the elevator postgame or be prepared to stay forever in the press box. Plus, you practically need a shuttle to get from the press box to that visitor's locker room area.

People in the press box are often warned of this need to beat the crowd ahead of time. It's the same way in Atlanta and, sadly, at Soldier Field, where they hold the elevator for the press and then luxury box holders cram into the elevator ahead of them anyway.

The point here is not to create sympathy for the press trying to reach the locker room but to show those two needed to get downstairs in a hurry because they had to reach the locker room to gauge the amount of discontent with players postgame over what happened. They needed to see if Eberflus had lost the team, which does seem kind of silly.

They could have saved themselves the trouble, had a brewski or two and just looked at social media to see fan reaction to it all, because the players are always 100 times angrier than the fans after all of their hard work goes up in smoke. And that's what happened because of the final 30 seconds being mismanaged by Eberflus but also Caleb Williams.

Williams' failure here can't be denied and needs to be addressed privately by Thomas Brown. They can't just look the other way and say "the wicked witch is dead now, let's win." Apparently, Williams has a problem with end-of-game thinking and it must be nipped in the bud now while he's a rookie.

SOLVING THE ISSUES CREATED BY MATT EBERFLUS' FIRING

THOMAS BROWN'S CHANCES WITH BEARS BASED ON INTERIM HISTORY

ANOTHER BEARS ANNOUNCEMENT STILL TO COME WITH COACHING STAFF

BEARS MANAGE TO TURN MATT EBERFLUS INTO A SYMPATHETIC FIGURE

Players' comments postgame held back little in their disgust. DJ Moore and Cole Kmet were particularly, were vocal.

According to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, one player in particular was especially angry in minutes before the media came in and it's not surprising who it was based on his past.

"I'm told that the locker room scene afterwards, when it was just the coaches and players in there, (was) pretty ugly," Breer said, during the Friday telecast of the Chiefs and Raiders. "Cornerback Jaylon Johnson, one of the veterans on the team, was one of the more vocal guys in there."

All of the discontent in the locker room afterward, even during the postgame interviews, can mean one of two things will happen and it makes the Dec. 8 game at San Francisco definite must-see TV, even if the Bears do have a good history of laying an egg in games on the west coast.

Because there was so much anger, they could easily come out playing harder and rally around Thomas Brown, even put up a good fight in this game and in their three divisional games down the stretch.

The other possibility is they all just roll over and play dead, get trampled by a physical team with a good plan and good coach. They pack it in and quit.

That's usually what teams do in the final two weeks when they've been eliminated in the NFL and go on the road with uncertain futures to face playoff-bound teams. This game doesn't fit those circumstances because the 49ers are struggling and the Bears have a chance to prove something themselves with Eberflus out of the picture. They can show everyone he was holding them back.

Every possible indication is Brown has had the offense playing better and harder, so at least initially he might be able to do it for the entire team.

One thing is definitely true: After Eberflus put up a 3-19 record in road games they should have no problem passing the preparedness and level of play they normally had when they played on the road.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.