The Chicago Bears’ patience has finally been exhausted, as the franchise relieved Matt Eberflus of his duties as head coach following the shambolic Thanksgiving Day defeat in Detroit.

Despite appearing to have sufficient time on the clock to march down the field and punish the hometown Lions for not putting the game away before the break, Chicago proved equally profligate, even after a sack pushed them to the edge of kicker Cairo Santos’ field goal range. The Bears still had 30 seconds remaining to move closer and at least force overtime, but took too long to line up and, with rookie QB Caleb Williams frantically trying to get his team aligned and the ball snapped, the sideline somehow neglected to use its remaining timeout, which resulted in the clock expiring as Williams threw a hopeful long toss into the endzone.

“This morning, after meeting with [chairman] George [H. McCaskey] and [president and CEO] Kevin [Warren], we informed Matt of our decision to move in a different direction with the leadership of our football team and the head-coaching position,” Bears general manager Ryan Poles announced. “I thank Matt for his hard work, professionalism and dedication to our organisation. We extend our gratitude for his commitment to the Chicago Bears and wish him and his family the best moving forward.”

Thomas Brown, only recently promoted to the role of offensive coordinator following the firing of Shane Waldron — ironically a decision taken by Eberflus — will now see out the season as interim head coach.

“I support Ryan and the decision that was made this morning,” Warren added. “We understand how imperative the head-coaching role is for building and maintaining a championship-calibre team, leading our players and our organisation. Our fans have stood by us and persevered through every challenge, and they deserve better results. Our organisational and operational structure is strong, focused, aligned and energised for the future.”

Brown has led the Bears’ offense — which has scored 46 second-half points, third most in the NFL, since Week 11 — for each of the last three weeks, and brings assistant head coaching experience from his time with the Los Angeles Rams that resulted in victory over Cincinnati at Super Bowl LVI. He joined the Bears as offensive passing game coordinator this season, having contributed to play-calling efforts as offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers in 2023.