Bear Digest

Players View Bears Interim Coach Thomas Brown as Positive Change

The energy and messages of Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown seem to resonate more with veteran players than did the tone set by Matt Eberflus.
Gene Chamberlain|
DeMarcus Walker says players are fed up with losing and want to the ones celebrating for a change, after six straight losses.
DeMarcus Walker says players are fed up with losing and want to the ones celebrating for a change, after six straight losses. | David Banks-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

No one knows how it will all turn out.

At least for now, though, Chicago Bears players are satisfied they have someone leading them who brings welcome change.

Thomas Brown’s appointment to interim head coach from offensive coordinator after Matt Eberflus’ firing resulted in a real contrast of styles. Players see it as a positive change but they’ll obviously know more after they’ve played some of their remaining five games. Ending a six-game losing streak will be the first order of business.

“It's my first time with this, that it happened within a year like this, but I feel like he's just done a good job coming in, setting the tone of what he wants to get done, and we want to win,” linebacker T.J. Edwards said. “We know what has happened this year. We're sick of losing and frustrated.

“We know that we have to go out there an execute and prove why we deserve to win and show up late in games to make those plays and get over the hump."

After six straight losses, Brown changed up the practice routine. They’re practicing later, and meeting after practice with media instead of beforehand.  They’re seeing something different from this head coach.

“We love his energy and his demeanor and attitude he brings for us as a team,” defensive end DeMarcus Walker said. “Obviously ever since he's been calling plays, he's brought a different level to it. And we got his back.”

Brown wants to bring the team together. Players talked about divisions within the team under Eberflus, not so much one side against the other but players all doing their own things and not being united enough. Walker said they tried to change this and one way was the mini-basketball hoop they brought into the locker room to try to get players from offense, defense and special teams to interact.

In the end, they’ve needed something else from their leader.

“I'm a direct person,” Walker said. “Two transparent people are always gonna get along. He doesn't sugarcoat. He's definitely able to call some things out and be able to be honest.

“That's grown men in this profession. That's what you need. You don't need to beat around the bush. You have to be very transparent.”

Practice, itself, is different.

“He’s a big emphasis on game reps in practice as well and so it starts with offense on the sideline  – break, go to the team and you have to run on the field and act like it’s a game rep, as if you’re coming from the sideline, getting on, getting off, defense comes on, scout team comes off the sideline and everything,” guard Teven Jenkins said. “And even with rotations, you’ve got to sprint off the field.

“After a while you want to get some guys some breaks so you sprint off the field, sprint back on for another play and all that. That’s just some things that are small but actually does make a difference in the mental preparation.”

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As for Brown’s leadership, players seem to be listening more. The message is new. 

“Everything he’s telling us right now is very intentful and all of us are very locked in,” Jenkins said. “Everybody is sitting at the front of their seat, leaning in.

“You can see when somebody’s actually attentive and you can see that everybody in the whole team room is very bought-in to what he’s been saying.  I think as a whole, though, not just under coaching, I feel like the players have taken the lead where if we don’t see plays being run right or there’s a mess-up or a mental error, we’ll start the whole play over. I think the players, we have done a great job of taking over and doing that the correct way.”

When it comes to games, Brown won’t be in a much different role since he’ll still be calling plays but from the sidelines now. Defensive coordinator Eric Washington will have the new role because Eberflus had been defensive play caller. Washington has some play-calling experience and did it in preseason with the Bears.

“Coach (Washington) definitely, he's been in this situation before,” Walker said. “I'm very confident in how he calls plays.’

The change might be letting the pass rushers go after QBs more instead of worrying about gap intergrity so much.

"It was just like, certain plays called, I just feel like that to where you gotta let your players play, you know?" Walker said. 

Jenkins sees change in practices and meetings that they can use to win close games, instead of losing at the end.

“I feel like there’s been big changes to our emphasis in how we attack every day on Wednesdays (practice) now and it’s about getting back to who we are as a team and trying to eliminate what happened these past few weeks,” Jenkins said. “Even what (Brown) was saying, we have a talented team but you get your skillset every day and you work on it.

“Everybody has talent in the NFL, it’s about what you do with your skills. That’s one thing we’ve got to attack.”

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.