LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — Music played inside the George "Mugs" Halas Auditorium on Monday morning as the Bears filed into their seats. Then the speakers suddenly went silent, and all eyes turned to the front of the room.
“Everybody looked at me,” said Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown, who was set to lead his first team meeting.
Last Friday morning marked the end of a disappointing Bears chapter led by now-former head coach Matt Eberflus, who was fired after the team's sixth straight loss. Monday then brought a turning of the page that was desperately needed at Halas Hall.
Brown, 38, was promoted from passing game coordinator to offensive coordinator to interim head coach in a span of just 17 days. He isn’t thinking about the prospect of removing that “interim” tag from his title when the Bears' search for a new head coach commences in earnest in January, but it's a storyline that looms over Chicago's final five games.
After all, Brown is a highly regarded individual who has been considered for head coach vacancies in the past. Brown interviewed for the Titans’ opening back in January and met with the Texans about their then-vacant position in early 2023.
Brown rose up in the college ranks before he was hired by Rams head coach Sean McVay in 2020. He was named assistant head coach a year later and was held in high regard by McVay.
“He has always been a guy that has had incredible command,” McVay told reporters in Los Angeles last week. “He’s been a great competitor. He kind of demands respect from people he’s around just by the way he carries himself.
“I have always thought that he was a guy that would be a head coach at some point.”
Brown now has a chance to audition for the Bears' full-time job after taking over a team that once held high hopes.
Chicago entered the 2024 campaign hopeful to emerge as a contender with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft in April. The Bears bolstered their roster this offseason and started 4-2 before their season spiraled with their ongoing six-game losing streak, which has all but officially eliminated them from postseason contention.
Eberflus lost the Bears’ locker room during the course of the losing side, during which four of the six losses came down to the final play of the game. The final straw came on Thanksgiving at Ford Field, where Eberflus’ game mismanagement in the final minute of the Bears' 23-20 loss to the Lions led to star cornerback Jaylon Johnson confronting him in the postgame locker room.
Eberflus was fired the next morning, and Brown entered the fold with a tall task on his hands. He began by texting with each player on the Bears’ roster last Friday and Saturday, seeking to earn their trust.
“He will communicate a clear message to the entire football team,” said a league source who has worked with Brown. “He will demand their best. He is really sharp. They’ll prepare and practice the right way.
“That place is so negative right now. He has to lift them up as much as he holds them accountable.”
The Bears returned from a three-day break last weekend with a new schedule. In a departure from Eberflus' approach, Brown shifted walkthroughs to immediately before practice. That eliminated a two-hour gap that Brown felt was less efficient.
Perhaps the most notable change under Brown is accountability. That lacked under Eberflus, who failed to take blame for his coaching mistakes in close losses. Not only did Eberflus continue repeating his miscues, he never owned up to them.
Key veterans in the Bears’ locker room held leadership council meetings with Eberflus and the coaching staff, but they didn’t feel like their voices were being heard.
Change was sorely needed. Now, the Bears have a different vibe with Brown leading them forward.
“There is a little bit of an exhale to it,” tight end Cole Kmet said. “I think the exhale for me kind of happened (Wednesday), just kind of finally moving on from it when you finally get on the grass and practice.
“Look, there’s obviously been a lot of frustration. I think the frustration happens just because of what we see in the locker room and who we have. We feel like we should be better at this point.”
Once a standout running back at Georgia, Brown was selected by the Falcons in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. For a native son of the Atlanta area, it seemed to be a dream in the making. That playing career was cut short in 2010 by injuries.
Brown began his journey in coaching a year later, first working as a strength and conditioning coach at Georgia in 2011. It started his path to his present position.
Along the way, Brown has gained a valuable perspective that he shared with the Bears in that first team meeting.
“Life isn't guaranteed,” Brown said when asked about his style. “This game isn't guaranteed. It's a privilege to be here, so I want us to maximize it every single day in the building. And when we have an opportunity to excel on game day, go cut it loose, man. Play with no fear.”
A prestigious nomination
Bears nose tackle Andrew Billings was named the team’s nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, which honors on-field excellence and a positive impact in the community.
Billings leads the Billings Family Find-A-Away Foundation, which focuses on youth development, educational opportunities and community investment. He launched the foundation in 2017.
The winner of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award will be announced at the Super Bowl in February.
Quote to note
“This will be the most coveted job in the National Football League this year. We need an individual who has extremely high standards, who is tough, who is demanding, who is bright, who has attention to detail, who seeks and will win championships, who creates an environment of accountability, who's creative, who's intelligent, who's a decisive decision-maker and who will represent the city of Chicago, all of our fans, this franchise, in a manner that is well-deserved.”
— Bears president Kevin Warren on the team's head coaching search
Emma's prediction (8-4): Bears 24, 49ers 20
Somewhere along their six-game losing slide, I promised not to pick the Bears again this season. But I'm a firm believer in the interim coach boost, and this game has all the makings of that. Thomas Brown will have this team prepared and playing more inspired football.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.