Chicago Bears may not have a head coaching vacancy after all

After a 0-4 start to the season, the Chicago Bears are 5-4 in their last 9 games with the idea of the team making the playoffs not completely out of the question.

With a Green Bay Packers loss to the New York Giants on Monday night, there is a chance that the Bears may be one game out of the final wild-card spot in the NFC.

To that end, it is shaping up that the Bears’ Week 18 game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field could be the Sunday Night Football game with both teams looking to make the playoffs.

Much like quarterback Justin Fields is making a strong case to be the quarterback of the Bears moving forward, head coach Matt Eberflus is making a strong case to return for a third season.

After a winless start during the first month of his second season as the Bears’ head coach, Eberflus appeared to be coaching on borrowed time. Even as recently as last week, it was reported that the Bears were eyeing coordinators around the league for a potential coaching change this off-season.

Eberflus, however, may be putting the Bears in a position where they have no choice but to bring him back for a third season.

It is hard to argue with the success that Eberflus has had while the season has progressed. Eberflus has turned the defense into a Top-10 unit in the NFL while, at the very least, having the team “in the hunt” for a playoff spot.

That is not to say that there shouldn’t be changes to Eberflus’ coaching staff. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy is still a coach that should not have his job after the season. If Eberflus is unwilling to move on from his offensive coordinator, then perhaps that is the only way there would be a head coaching change. But, as of now, Eberflus appears to be trending toward being safe after the season.