Heading into a home matchup with the rival Green Bay Packers, head coach Matt Eberflus is hoping this significant alteration can provide some sort of rekindling to the offense.
Tasked with guiding No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams‘ rookie campaign, Waldron’s results have been dismal, with points scarce and the beating dished out to Williams overwhelming.
Waldron’s firing comes after a 19-3 home defeat to the 3-7 New England Patriots on Sunday in which Williams threw for 120 yards, the offense had just 142 total yards and the 2024 top pick was sacked nine times — an NFL high for any game this season.
Chicago has failed to score a touchdown in two straight games, allowing six or more sacks in back-to-back weeks for the first time since Weeks 8-9 in 1993, per NFL Research.
The results have been horrible in 2024, but also don’t bode well for the maturation of Williams, who’s been sacked 38 times — the most for a rookie in his first 10 weeks since the Houston Texans’ David Carr was sacked 49 times in 2002, per NFL Research.
Waldron has come under fire in recent weeks and after the latest loss, Eberflus said Monday that “everything’s on the table.”
In a Bears season expected to be one of promise for the franchise’s future, Chicago has dealt with some hard times since losing to Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders on a Hail Mary in Week 8. The Bears went from a three-game winning streak to a three-game skid, their offense disappearing in the process.
It will no longer be up to Waldron to figure out the Bears’ offensive woes, as Chicago is throwing a Hail Mary of its own in the hopes of turning things around.
Brown steps into the OC role amid his first season with the Bears and has experience calling plays in the NFL. The 38-year-old was hired as Panthers OC in 2023 and eventually took over play-calling duties along Frank Reich’s short-lived season as head coach. Before that, he was Sean McVay’s assistant head coach during the Rams’ Super Bowl-winning campaign in 2021.
First appeared on www.nfl.com