Oct 13, 2024; London, United Kingdom; Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus watches from the sidelines against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second half during an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Following the disaster that was the end of their Thanksgiving Day loss to the Detroit Lions, many figured it was only a matter of time until the Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Ebeflus.

But come Friday, the 54-year-old Toledo native was fielding questions from reporters via Zoom, as is customary for NFL head coaches the day after nationally televised games. That Eberflus was taking part in his Friday press conference seemingly indicated his job was safe for now — both to the reporters asking him the questions and the head coach, himself.

“I’m confident that I’ll be working on San Francisco and getting ready for that game,” Eberflus said.

Say what you will about Ebeflus, but it seemed like a safe assumption to make. After all, why would an NFL team allow a head coach to represent it to the media if it knew it would be firing him soon thereafter?

Then again, these are the Chicago Bears.

Approximately two hours after Eberflus addressed the press — and once again attempted to defend his disastrous clock management — the Bears fired the third-year head coach. The decision only came as a surprise to some because Eberflus had participated in his Friday press conference, but also not a total surprise because, again, these are the Bears.

As for why the Bears would have waited until after Eberflus’ press conference to fire him, only a couple of possible explanations exist and none of them make Chicago look great. Maybe something transpired after — or during — the press conference that led to the Bears making the final decision on their head coach’s fate. Or perhaps ownership was unaware of his scheduled Friday availability (although even that seems far-fetched).

The likeliest explanation, however, is merely that this is an organization where dysfunction has often been the default setting, and much like Eberflus on Thursday, the Bears were caught flat-footed. So while Eberflus’ firing may have been justified, there’s also plenty of evidence to suggest that Chicago’s problems extend well beyond whoever’s not calling timeouts from its sideline.

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.