Bears speechless after ninth straight loss

Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown calls a timeout during Sunday’s loss to the Detroit Lions.
Mark Busch/Shaw Local News Network

The Bears locker room cleared out quickly Sunday. The players didn’t have much left to say.

Less than an hour after the Detroit Lions beat the Bears 34-17 at Soldier Field, two players in the Bears locker room — who shall remain nameless — finished up interviews at nearly the same moment.

As a gaggle of media members dispersed in search of other voices, one player leaned in toward the other and said, “What do they expect us to say?”

The Bears are out of answers. They lost their ninth consecutive game. They were blown out for the third straight game since firing former head coach Matt Eberflus.

Nobody lingered in the locker room on Sunday. The players showed up, went to work, punched the timecard and got out of there. Some fans probably don’t blame them. This team was eliminated from playoff contention a week ago. There were roughly 6,000 empty seats at Soldier Field on Sunday.

The last two games, at this point, are a formality.

Asked after the game if he’s still trying to prove himself to the Bears front office, receiver Keenan Allen — whose contract expires after the season — said this: “Everybody. Yeah, you just got to prove it to all 32 teams. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s about and the last name on your back is really what matters. I ain’t never going to quit. Just keep going.”

The Bears traded a fourth-round draft pick to the Chargers in exchange for Allen in March. They did so knowing he was on the final year of his contract. Allen spent the first 11 years of his career in Southern California. The hope for the Bears was he would help elevate the offense for rookie quarterback Caleb Williams.

Allen played well on Sunday, racking up 141 yards and a touchdown on nine catches. But he sure sounded like a player who is ready to get back to California for the winter, and maybe permanently.

“Just trying to do my job,” Allen said. “Keep fighting. Just keep putting good stuff on tape.”

That tape would be for his impending free agency.

Unfortunately, his recent offensive outburst has been too little too late for the 2024 Bears.

But other players, like Williams, aren’t going anywhere. General manager Ryan Poles will need to figure out how to piece together a competitive team from the ashes of this season. It starts with finding a head coach.

Not everyone shares Allen’s outlook, of course. Rookie receiver Rome Odunze, who is under contract for at least three more seasons, views it differently.

“Different mixed emotions,” Odunze said when asked about the season. “We all carry that burden and carry that weight. It’s tough. I think there are good character men in this locker room that can continue to uplift and continue to keep going. I follow that inspiration and try to be a light as well.”

Williams has been a bright spot. Statistically, he’s having one of the best seasons of any Bears quarterback ever. He threw for another 334 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday. His 2024 season is currently sixth on the Bears’ single-season passing record books with 3,271 passing yards.

“Every snap is valuable,” Williams said. “There are so many different situations that happen throughout games that you can learn from and that I’ve learned from this year.”

When it comes to the stats, it’s a little bit hard to know what’s real and what’s not when Williams can put up numbers in blowout losses. Defenses undoubtedly play different when they have a two-score lead.

Detroit led by two possessions halfway through the first quarter on Sunday.

“We can evaluate everything,” Brown said when asked about it. “I think the way guys respond, how they handle adversity. Also kind of being in the moment, not having penalties. Obviously, sustaining some drives and putting those things together. Everything’s always under evaluation.”

That’s been the case for this Bears coaching staff since well before Brown took the reins. Eberflus loved to say he would evaluate everything.

But for the 2024 Bears, there’s not much left to evaluate.

Bears defensive tackles Zacch Pickens and Chris Williams pressure Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff during Sunday’s game at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Mark Busch/Shaw Local News Network