NFL Rumors: Bears' Matt Eberflus Expected to Return as HC in 2024 Despite Struggles

The Chicago Bears are expected to retain head coach Matt Eberflus for the 2024 season.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported the news on Saturday's edition of GameDay Kickoff prior to the Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys game.

The 53-year-old Eberflus became the Bears' head coach in 2022 after four years as the Indianapolis Colts' defensive coordinator. Chicago finished 3-14 in 2022 before improving to 6-9 with two regular season games left this season.

On Nov. 15, Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported that "it'd probably take a late-season surge from the team" for Eberflus to return in 2024.

That's happened, though, with the Bears winning three of their last four games. They would have gone 4-for-4 if not for blowing a 26-14 fourth quarter lead to the 11-win Detroit Lions in an eventual 31-26 road loss.

Along the way, signs have pointed toward Eberflus' job being more secure than it seemed earlier this season, when the Bears started 0-4 and then 3-8 before its recent rally.

The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported on Dec. 2 that the Bears weren't expected to fire Eberflus before the season ended.

One week later, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, reported that some within the Bears organization felt the team had improved throughout the season. Furthermore, the feeling was that the Bears had "continued to play hard" for Eberflus.

Ultimately, it seems as though Eberflus has bought himself some time with the Bears' latest rally. For now, Chicago has two winnable games down the stretch as well at home versus the 7-8 Atlanta Falcons and at the 7-8 Green Bay Packers.