Nobody will cheer for the Chicago Bears to lose on Sunday. That is ridiculous. Fans are eager to see this team win games after years and years of mediocre-to-terrible seasons. At 2-2, they navigated a difficult part of their schedule well enough despite some obvious issues. Now they have a chance to build some momentum against a 1-3 Carolina Panthers team that still has a lot of problems. Their defense is decimated by injuries, and they’ve already benched young quarterback Bryce Young.
On paper, the Bears have all of the advantages. Their roster is healthier; they have a top-10 defense, four legitimate weapons in the passing game, and a running back with plenty of explosiveness to create big plays. Yet nobody seems to have confidence it will be simple. Fans know how inconsistent this team has been. It isn’t hard to see them laying an egg on Sunday against what feels like an inferior opponent.
That begs the question. What happens if they do lose?
Never mind that it would drop them to 2-3. The fact is the Bears would have let another winnable game slip through their fingers. The odds of them getting through the second half of their schedule with six division games, the 49ers, and the Seahawks will be almost impossible. There is no question such a loss would finally force the organization to take a long, hard look at head coach Matt Eberflus. While nobody can dispute his work with the defense, he was hired to turn this into a good team.
That can’t happen if his offenses keep underachieving like they’ve done since he arrived. His selection of Luke Getsy as offensive coordinator proved misguided two years ago. That is why he hired Shane Waldron earlier this year in hopes of correcting the problem. Instead, it’s more of the same issues. When that is the case, it is evident the problems run deeper. That falls on the head coach. He is the one responsible for elevating the roster to play its best. Eberflus hasn’t done that.
It’s his third year with the Chicago Bears. This is when a team should start winning. Losing to opponents like Carolina is no longer acceptable. If they do, the conversations about Eberflus’ future will be justified.
