When it comes to trying to bounce back from a crushing loss, the Bears have had a lot of practice.
This year alone, they’ve thrown a game-clinching pick-six with about two minutes to play (Week 2 vs. Buccaneers), been stuffed on fourth-and-one in a tie game with about three minutes left (Week 4 vs. Broncos) and turned the ball over three times in the fourth quarter (Week 9 vs. Saints). They lost all three.
But Sunday’s loss was the worst of all — up by 12 after making a field goal with 4:15 to play, the Bears gave up 17 consecutive points to lose to the NFC North rival Lions.
Coach Matt Eberflus admitted as much in a team meeting Monday, saying that “over the course of a long career, you might have one or two of those.” He challenged his players to return Wednesday feeling rejuvenated physically and mentally. He implored them to practice well — “That’s all you have, is the practice field,” he said — and said they did all week. He’s not worried about a letdown Monday night against the Vikings.
How the Bears respond will be telling — and perhaps instructive. As the Bears ponder whether their coaching staff is worth keeping another season, the coaches’ ability to keep the players focused will offer clues. Eberflus simply needs wins, too — he’s 0-9 against NFC North opponents since joining the Bears last season.
Quarterback Justin Fields also will be measured. He has six games left before the Bears have to decide whether to commit to him or draft a college prospect. The Lions game was a decent start to his stretch run, but the Bears have yet to find consistency from him in 2½ seasons.
Cornerback Jaylon Johnson was asked whether it will be difficult for the Bears to respond against the Vikings after a crushing defeat.
“Is it hard to do? I hate to say it, but we’ve had plenty of losses and plenty of opportunities to find ways to build off them,” he said. “It’s not too tough.”
If the Bears were good at it, they wouldn’t be 3-8. Johnson said it’s not for a lack of -focus.
“I feel like [after] every other loss we’ve had, just continue to bounce back, continue to work, continue to build,” Johnson said. “And that’s it.”
Receiver DJ Moore admitted that, on the list of losses, Sunday’s was “a pretty rough one.” The Bears are the only team in modern NFL history to hold the ball for two-thirds of the play clock, get four takeaways and lose in regulation.
“We’re probably going to come out the same way,” Moore said. “And at the end, it’s going to be a different outcome, hopefully.
“We’re going to figure it out, how to win down the stretch.”
The Bears have spent all season talking about finding a way to close out wins.
“That’s what we want to do,” Johnson said. “We have enough guys on our team to do it. Really, just looking for somebody to make the play. It’s never going to be one particular guy. At some point, somebody has to step up and make a play.”
Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds was comforted by the way the Bears practiced this week.
“It’s not going to always go exactly how we draw it up, but at the same time, we know that we put our best foot forward,” he said. “As a man, you’ve got to accept that sometimes. You can’t live in doubt. You can’t live in fear of, ‘What if this happens? What if that happens?’ All you can control is what you do day-in and day-out, and that’s what our focus is.”
Now they need to do it on a game day.
