The Matt Eberflus era is over in Chicago -- the Bears just fired the guy in his third year with the team ... marking the first in-season head coaching move in franchise history.
The news broke on Friday ... less than 24 hours after the Bears' sixth-straight loss at the hands of the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day -- a result that was met with heavy criticism.
With the ball and down 23-20 in the final minute of the game, Eberflus elected not to use a timeout to stop the clock ... and Chicago's late push came up short.
"I'm confident that I'll be working onto San Francisco and getting ready for that game."
— Marquee Bears (@BearsMarquee) November 29, 2024
Matt Ebeflus on his job security. pic.twitter.com/gLAVg1abBU
Hours before reports of his termination, Eberflus seemed confident he'd be back on the sidelines against the San Francisco 49ers next weekend ... but that wasn't the case.
Eberflus went 14-32 in two-plus seasons with Chicago -- and 4-8 in 2024 -- but struggled heavily in close-scoring games.
Bears offensive coordinator Thomas Brown will take over for the rest of the season.
Whoever gets the full-time gig will have the opportunity to work with 2024 No. 1 pick Caleb Williams and a talented offense ... so despite the organization's recent struggles, the future could be bright with the right person at the helm.