CHICAGO — With two minutes and 14 seconds remaining in a horrendous game against the Seattle Seahawks, the fans seated in the United Club of Soldier Field started to chant.
“Sell the team!”
“Sell the team!”
“Sell the team!”
The Chicago Bears decided to punt after fourth-and-inches from their own 39 turned into fourth-and-5 following offensive lineman fill-in Jake Curhan’s false start.
“Sell the team!”
“Sell the team!”
But wait … the Bears called a timeout. They changed their mind. They wanted to go for it.
After all, what did the Bears have to lose but another game in another lost season for the NFL’s charter franchise?
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The chants, though, started again.
And they spread.
“Sell the team!”
The only thing that seemed to stop them was what quarterback Caleb Williams did in the game’s waning moments amidst more clock mismanagement by the Bears.
On fourth-and-5, Williams escaped an all-out blitz from the Seahawks and connected with receiver DJ Moore over the middle for a 14-yard gain. Three plays later on third-and-14, Williams eluded more pressure from Seattle, took a hit to his throat from linebacker Boye Mafe and completed a 15-yard pass to rookie receiver Rome Odunze.
But the chants would return.
Williams threw an interception over the middle on the Bears’ final offensive play against another all-out blitz by Seattle. Quarterback Geno Smith then took a knee for a 6-3 win for the Seahawks on “Thursday Night Football.”
“SELL THE TEAM!” chants broke out from Bears fans at Soldier Field tonight.
🎥 @jacobinfante24 pic.twitter.com/ErHL3deV9X
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) December 27, 2024
The fans who decided to stick out such an ugly game the day after Christmas let chairman George McCaskey and his family hear it again. Their chants grew louder — angrier.
“Sell the team!”
“Sell the team!”
“Sell the team!”
As always, things can and will get worse for the Bears. Fans have gone from chanting “Fire Nagy” to “Fire Flus” to “Sell the team,” which, according to some longtime observers, is a new one from the home crowd. The Bears’ losing streak stretched to 10 games. The only thing missing is the Green Bay Packers’ annual pummeling of the Bears.
And that likely comes in the season finale at Lambeau Field.
Williams tried to blame himself for what transpired against the Seahawks. He’s right in thinking that he can play better, especially with the Bears defense delivering its best game since the dismissal of coach Matt Eberflus. Williams was 16-for-28 passing for 122 yards. He was sacked seven times. His interception-free streak ended with his final throw. It was one of his worst games this season and it came on national television.
“I didn’t play well enough,” Williams said. “I didn’t help put the team in a good position to win, a better position to win, and that’s what it is.”
Williams pointed to the “stupid” sacks he took against the Seahawks. He’s been sacked a league-high 67 times this season.
“I’ll definitely take the heat for this one because of some of the situations that I put us in,” he said.
Caleb Williams did not complete a single pass beyond 6 yards downfield until the final drive of regulation in the Bears’ TNF loss to the Seahawks.
🔸 Under 10 AY: 15/17, 107 yards (+4.5% CPOE)
🔸 Over 10 AY: 1/9, 15 yards, INT (-27.2% CPOE)#SEAvsCHI | #DaBears pic.twitter.com/4pr4JU2jsm— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) December 27, 2024
But it’s still unfair to expect the rookie quarterback to overcome everything this calamitous season has provided. He needs to play better, but he’s trying to pull himself out of a hole he didn’t dig. His first NFL offensive coordinator and head coach were fired during the season, which is something the Bears had never done before this year. The team will be searching for its sixth head coach under McCaskey soon enough.
The “sell the team” chants Thursday at Soldier Field came just four days after Detroit Lions fans filled Soldier Field in their Honolulu blue and watched their team roll to a 34-17 win. A day later, Packers fans chanted “The Bears still suck” on “Monday Night Football” as their favorite team routed the New Orleans Saints at Lambeau Field.
Williams was asked about the fans’ chants and frustrations.
“This is my first year,” he said. “Their frustrations go way longer back than I’ve been here. My job is to go out there and win games. We don’t focus on the outside noise. Fans, they’re going to cheer and maybe boo sometimes. You can’t react to that. It’s not something we react to. We have a job to do. And sometimes you don’t do so well on the job some days and some days you’re pretty consistent, some days you play a great game.”
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Williams’ best play Thursday night was negated by a penalty in the second quarter. On third-and-10 from the Seahawks’ 17, Williams scrambled to his left and fired a touchdown pass to Odunze in the end zone. Curhan, who played in place of injured starter Teven Jenkins, was penalized for holding. The Bears settled for a 42-yard field goal by Cairo Santos.
They never scored again.
Williams remains the most appealing thing about the Bears, but he desperately needs help on and off the field with coaching. His development can’t be derailed by this abysmal season.
And the Bears, being the Bears, haven’t broken him — yet.
“Frustrating, annoyed, but learning, I would say,” Williams said. “I definitely think that this is going to be good for me. Excited about this last game and then excited about the future.”
(Photo: Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
