Matt Eberflus, Caleb Williams fail to explain Bears' late-game fiasco vs. Lions

The Detroit Lions dominated the first half against the Chicago Bears on Thursday, thought the 16-0 score clearly did not reflect that. Things turned the other direction in the second half, though the Lions hung on to win 23-20.

The Bears trailed 23-20 with about three and a half minutes to go. A drive full of fits (sacks, penalties) and starts (positive plays, a bad pass interference call on Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor) led to a 2nd-and-20 from the Lions' 35-yard line.

After Za'Darius Smith sacked Caleb Williams for a six-yard loss with 36 seconds to go. Chicago's rookie signal caller was trying to get the Bears' offense back aligned as the clock continued to tick.

The Bears had a timeout left, but were not using it. After letting six more seconds go off the clock, Williams snapped the ball with just six seconds left, heaving a pass deep downfield in the direction of wide receiver Rome Odunze that fell incomplete as the clock hit zeros.

It was an inexplicable failure on a lot of levels. No. 1 on the list of failures is head coach Eberflus, who should have recognized the need to take the Bears' final timeout to conserve time when it was clear Williams wasn't going to do it. The head coach has to take control in that situation, above anyone else.

Lions fans should laugh at Matt Eberflus and Caleb Williams both failing to explain Bears' epic failure

The end of the game was of course a prominent topic during Eberflus' postgame press conference.

"We’re there at second-and-20,” Eberflus said. “We take the sack there and we’re at 36 seconds (remaining). Our hope was—because it was third (down) going into fourth—that we would rack that play at 18 seconds, throw it into field goal range and call a timeout. That’s where it was and that was our decision-making process in that moment. We were outside our field goal range and we needed to get a few more yards, as close as we can get, then we were going to call a timeout. That’s why we held that timeout.”

So why wasn't a timeout called when the clock got below, say, 10 seconds?

"We liked the play, that we had, and we were hoping he would call it—Um, get the ball snapped—and then we could call time out there,” Eberflus said.

So how should you have handled the closing seconds?

“I like what we did there,” Eberflus said. “Once it’s under seven seconds, if you’re going to call a timeout—really under 12—then you don’t have an option. Because it’s third to fourth and you’ve gotta throw it in the end zone then. To me, I think we handled it the right way, we racked the play, get it in bounds, call a timeout—that’s why we held it—but it didn’t work out the way we wanted it to.”

Williams was sacked with 32 seconds left, So how did you only get one play?

“Just like I said,” Eberflus reiterated.

So why wasn't the ball snapped at 18 seconds, like you said was the plan?

"We just gotta do a better job together. Just got to do a better job to get together and re-rack that play. Get it off and call a time-out.”

So the players deserve blame?

“No. It’s a situation where you got to get the play in, snap the ball, and get (the play) off, and then call a time-out [...] we were all on the same page, just have to do it better,” Eberflus said.

Of course Williams was asked about the end of Thursday's game too. His answers to questions didn't make much more sense than his coach's (h/t to Colton Pouncy of The Athletic).

The primary takeaways from Williams comments are these:

• He did not realize the Bears had a timeout left (?)
• Because it took so long for the offense to get set, he changed the original play, on the idea there would only be one play
• It's out of his hands to call a timeout in a situation

On the latter note, Williams was asked if he believes calling a timeout in that situation is above his paygrade.

"In that situation I'm living with the call and I let the coaches and everybody make that decision depending on whether it's time, whether it's the guys running back and they're far down the field. Whatever that situation is, that's going to be Coach's call. Maybe in the later years of my career, but right now, I get the call, I'm trying to lead the guys to win and I'm trying to get everybody lined up and from there I'm trying to make a play for the Chicago Bears."

With those comments to the last question of the transcript Pouncy posted, Williams joined the bandwagon of Bears' players deflecting blame to Eberflus for the botched final sequence on Thursday.

All in all, Lions fans can (and should) laugh at the complete inability of Eberflus and Williams to explain the Bears' failure late in Thursday's game. Not that it can even truly be explained logically. Lions' fans can also be thankful, in the spirit of the holiday, that those kind of inexplicable failures to lose games don't happen to their team anymore.