In a season filled with disappointment, the Chicago Bears hit a new low on Thursday night, falling 6-3 to the Seattle Seahawks in a game marred by poor clock management and questionable decision-making. Just one month after head coach Matt Eberflus was fired following timeout troubles against the Detroit Lions, the Bears found themselves in an all-too-familiar position, unable to capitalize on a chance to tie the game in the closing minutes.
Déjà Vu All Over Again
With 5:12 remaining in the fourth quarter and trailing by three, the Bears took over possession at their own 11-yard line, armed with all three timeouts. What followed was a series of plays that lacked urgency and showcased the team’s ongoing struggle with late-game situations.
After running just six plays, the Bears faced a fourth-and-inches at their own 39-yard line. Left guard Jake Curhan, starting in place of an injured Teven Jenkins, was then flagged for a false start, pushing Chicago back five yards. Interim head coach Thomas Brown initially had the punt team on the field before using the team’s first timeout with 2:14 left on the clock.
A Change of Heart
Brown later explained his thought process, stating that it wasn’t confusion but rather a change of mind that led to the timeout. “I think being able to use [punter] Tory [Taylor] as a weapon, and we still had I think it was 2:16 on the clock, still had our three timeouts, plus the two-minute warning,” Brown said. “The way our defense had been playing all day, possibly have a chance to go flip the field and force the three-and-out, get a shorter field and have, like, a last end-of-the-game drive. That was my thought process.”
However, Brown’s change of heart proved costly, as the Bears managed to convert the fourth-down attempt with a 14-yard pass from quarterback Caleb Williams to receiver DJ Moore. But the drive stalled from there, with Chicago allowing precious seconds to tick away before rookie Rome Odunze gained 15 yards on a third-and-14 play to move the ball into Seattle territory.
Missed Opportunities
Despite crossing midfield with just over a minute remaining, the Bears failed to get into field goal range for kicker Cairo Santos, whose range Brown confirmed was between 34 and 37 yards. Chicago’s final four plays were all passes, with Williams throwing his first interception of the season on the last attempt, ending a streak of 353 passes without a turnover.
“I think obviously there’s times where you can have a better call, want a better call, things like that, but we didn’t execute,” Williams said. “I didn’t execute on many different occasions this game, and it’s frustrating. But got to find a way.”
– Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears Quarterback
A Season Slipping Away
The loss marks the Bears’ 10th straight defeat and further highlights the team’s inability to close out games. Players described a chaotic feeling on the sideline as timeouts were used in situations that did little to improve their chances of scoring.
As the Bears head into the offseason, they’ll need to address not only their on-field performance but also their game management and decision-making processes. Until they can consistently execute in high-pressure situations, victories will continue to slip through their grasp, leaving fans to wonder what might have been.
