NFL Winners and Losers: Bears win again as coach Matt Eberflus gets himself off the hot seat

When the Chicago Bears lost on Oct. 1, the talk wasn't about Matt Eberflus being head coach in 2024. It was if he'd last until Halloween.

The Bears are proud of the fact that they've never fired a coach during the season. That likely changed the entire landscape of the franchise going forward.

Eberflus is the rare case of a coach getting himself off the hottest of seats. The Bears, who fell to 0-4 on Oct. 1 and were as low as 2-7 in early November, have won five of seven are among the hottest teams in the NFL as the season closes. The Bears handled the Atlanta Falcons, a team that was still alive for the NFC South title, in an easy 37-17 win on Sunday. The Bears piled up more than 400 yards of offense and the final outcome was rarely in doubt.

And Eberflus continued his unlikely resurgence.

It looked bad for Eberflus early this season. When the Bears were 2-7, his career record was 5-21. The start of the season was a nightmare. Chicago lost 38-20 to their rival, the Green Bay Packers, in the opener. In the second game, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Bears and Bucs defensive players said they knew which play was coming on a pick 6 that put the game away. It wasn't a good look for the coaching staff.

It continued to get worse. On Sept. 20, three days after the loss to Tampa Bay, quarterback Justin Fields said he was being robotic and thinking too much on the field, and when asked the reason he said it could be "coaching." That same day, Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams resigned under unusual circumstances.

Eberflus seemed to be in real trouble after Week 3, when the Bears trailed the Kansas City Chiefs 34-0 at halftime. They were outscored 27-0 in the second quarter and lost 41-10. The next week the Bears fell to 0-4 with a loss to the then-winless Denver Broncos, with a questionable decision from Eberflus to go for it on fourth down rather than attempt a go-ahead field goal in the final minutes.

After all of that, it seemed Eberflus had no chance to make it for a third season. But then it turned around.

Fields started making a ton of plays. The defense looked entirely different. If a coach should be judged on the improvement of his team, Eberflus passed that test. The Bears are better. They have been for most of the second half of the season. There was a report this week from NFL Media that Eberflus was expected back in 2024. That wasn't too much of a surprise. Sunday's win helped Eberflus' case to return, if there was any doubt about it.

The offseason is set up well for the Bears. The Carolina Panthers lost again, which all but clinches the first overall pick for the Bears. They can draft either Caleb Williams or Drake Maye and trade Fields for some picks, or trade the pick for what might be a record haul. It's a good place to be in. Chicago also has plenty of cap space for the second straight offseason.

Whether it's a good thing that Eberflus will be back as coach can be debated. It's not like any Bears fans wanted him back two months ago. But the Bears will enter the offseason with a lot of momentum after a strong finish. And it appears that they will return their head coach to see if he can keep the good vibes going next season.

Here are the rest of the winners and losers for Week 17 of the NFL season:

WINNERS

Brock Purdy's rebound: Purdy was coming off a rough game in a big spot against the Ravens, but the San Francisco 49ers quarterback reminded everyone on Sunday that on the whole, he is having a great season.

Purdy was excellent, with many big throws, in the 49ers' 27-10 win over the Washington Commanders. Purdy also set a 49ers single-season record for passing yards, which was held by Jeff Garcia. That record speaks to the type of season he's having. Purdy had 230 yards and a 124.7 passer rating on Sunday.

The 49ers are fine, despite the surprisingly lopsided loss to the Ravens last week. Purdy is just fine too.

C.J. Stroud and Offensive Rookie of the Year: Stroud was still the favorite to win Offensive Rookie of the Year but when he missed two weeks due to a concussion he lost some ground to Rams receiver Puka Nacua in the race.

The race should be over now. Stroud returned and was right back on track in a decisive 26-3 win over the Tennessee Titans. He threw for 213 yards and a touchdown with a 102.7 passer rating. That's the type of performance he has had all season long.

The Texans are still alive for the AFC South title or a wild-card spot heading into Week 18. Stroud is the biggest reason for that, and he's about to get a nice award for his effort.

C.J. Beathard: The Jacksonville Jaguars were smart to sit Trevor Lawrence. He has a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder, on top of other injuries he has played through this season. The Jaguars weren't going anywhere in the playoffs with Lawrence playing through a myriad of injuries. But Jacksonville also couldn't afford to lose because of a three-way tie for first place in the AFC South.

The Jaguars stole a win on Sunday. They beat the Carolina Panthers 26-0 with Beathard filling in capably at quarterback. Beathard had 178 yards and no interceptions, which is all the Jaguars needed. The defense shut down a bad Panthers offense. The Jaguars offense did enough to make sure the game wasn't close. Jacksonville finishes the season with a chance to win a division title at the Titans in Week 18. Maybe they'll have Lawrence back for it.

AFC South: The Jaguars, Texans and Indianapolis Colts all won on Sunday, setting up a dramatic final week in the division.

The Colts beat the Las Vegas Raiders 23-20 to keep their playoff hopes alive. It wasn't pretty the whole way through, but not much has been pretty for this season's Colts. But they keep winning. They're 9-7 and play the Texans in Week 18. That could end up being a play-in game for a wild-card spot, or for the division if the Jaguars lose to the Titans.

The AFC South was supposed to be one of the NFL's worst divisions. But thanks to surprising seasons from the Colts and Texans, three teams from the division are still alive going into the final week of the season.

Los Angeles Rams, but it was close: The Rams had a tricky game on Sunday at the New York Giants. The Giants have been more competitive with Tyrod Taylor at quarterback, and he had more than 300 yards Sunday. The Rams made some mistakes to keep the Giants in the game. But the Rams held on.

The Rams were probably lucky the Giants have had kicker issues. They had to sign Mason Crosby, the former Packers kicker who has been unsigned all year, and have him kick Sunday. Crosby missed a 54-yarder in the final minute and the Rams held on to a 26-25 win.

The Rams don't care how they pick up wins. They had a chance to clinch a playoff spot in Week 17 with a win and either a Seahawks loss or a Packers-Vikings tie. They handled their part of that equation.

LOSERS

Anyone but Lamar Jackson in the MVP race: While Josh Allen might still have a small chance to steal the MVP award with an enormous Week 18 (if Buffalo wins next week, they'll take the AFC East title), Jackson likely settled the matter on Sunday.

Jackson had huge game as the Baltimore Ravens kept rolling. The Ravens blew out the Miami Dolphins 56-19 to clinch the top seed of the AFC. The MVP has gone to the quarterback of a No. 1 seed in 11 of the past 14 seasons.

Jackson had a perfect game on Sunday. He completed 12-of-14 passes for 255 yards and three touchdowns in the first half, for a perfect 158.3 passer rating. He kept it going in the second half and finished with 321 yards, five touchdowns and a 158.3 rating. That should end the MVP race.

Jackson is having a marvelous season. He started to get a lot of MVP buzz after a Week 16 win over the 49ers. The hype won't slow down after another impressive Ravens win against a very good opponent. They're looking like a Super Bowl favorite after blasting the Dolphins, and Jackson is on the verge of his second MVP award.

Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles are in an absolute tailspin late in the season.

Philadelphia can't be taken seriously as a contender unless something changes, and there's not a lot of time to fix everything that's wrong. The Eagles lost 35-31 to an Arizona Cardinals team that was 3-12 coming in, with James Conner scoring the game-winning touchdown with 32 seconds left. That opens the door for the Cowboys to win the NFC East next week (and makes the officiating controversy at Dallas on Saturday night an even bigger deal).

The Eagles defense has been a problem all season, and it couldn't get the stop it needed in the final two minutes. Giving up 35 points to the Cardinals at home is a terrible look. It wasn't a fluky loss either; the Eagles were completely outplayed. They got a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first half and still lost.

The Eagles have lost four of five. The latest loss should sound some alarms throughout Philadelphia.

Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Mayfield and the Buccaneers were on a hot streak. But not much lasts long in the NFL this season.

Mayfield and the Buccaneers had a surprisingly bad game in a 23-13 loss against the New Orleans Saints, which kept them from clinching the NFC South title. The Saints were up 20-0 before the Bucs finally got some points in the fourth quarter. Mayfield struggled early in the game but was able to pad his stats late and get to 309 yards. He wasn't that effective when it mattered.

The Bucs finish with a game against the Panthers and should be able to clinch the division then. But the loss Sunday takes a lot of steam out of their late-season hot streak.

Bill O'Brien: O'Brien was supposed to help fix the New England Patriots offense. Instead he's got a bunch of players who look like they should be changing positions.

O'Brien doesn't have a lot of talent to work with and he's limited by a miserable quarterback situation, but the team's offensive coordinator isn't helping a lot. The Patriots had four turnovers in the first 18 minutes of Sunday's game and their offense looked horrible again in a 27-21 loss to the Buffalo Bills. The Bills' win, combined with the Dolphins' loss, means that Buffalo at Miami in Week 18 will be for the AFC East championship.

The Patriots have a lot of work to do in the offseason and a lot of questions to answer, including with the coaching staff. The Patriots don't currently have a top-two pick to have a clear fix to their quarterback issue. The only good news is Patriots fans only have to watch this offense for one more game.