The NFLPA released their annual team report cards on Wednesday, and the Chicago Bears received mixed reviews from their players, which placed them in the middle of the pack with the rest of the league. Chicago ranked 14 out of 32 clubs this year, and their assessment confirmed everything we suspected as the 2024 season crashed and burnt regarding Matt Eberflus losing his locker room.
“The players’ most frequent complaint was with their former head coach, Matt Eberflus. The players felt like he lacked a willingness to listen to the players and the players’ leadership council, and he mismanaged the weekly team schedule. After the team completed the survey, the Bears terminated Eberflus and hired Ben Johnson as their new head coach. It will be interesting for the players to see if some of these areas change next year.”
I don’t want to spend too much time dwelling on the Matt Eberflus era here today, but that’s some pretty damning confirmations of his ineptitude straight from the horse’s mouths.
All right, let’s get into the grades and feedback received.
Chicago Bears NFLPA Player Survey Grades
© Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn ImagesTreatment of Families
Grade: C+
Rank: 19th
The Bears provide a daycare during home games and a family room during road games. Players rated the post-game family area 6.92 out of 10, which ranked 23.
Food/Dining Area
Grade: C+
Rank: 22nd
The players weren’t high on the taste or freshness of the foot, with their scores ranking 23 and 24, respectively, but they loved the dining area at Halas Hall, rating it 8.64 out of 10, which ranked 15 in the league.
Nutritionist/Dietician
Grade: B
Rank: 19th
According to the NFLPA survey, 71 percent of players reported getting an individualized nutrition plan, ranking the Bears 26 out of 32 teams. However, players believed their dietician was only moderately accessible, ranking 22 out of 32.
Locker Room
Grade: A-
Ranking: 8th
Most players loved the locker room—the physical locker room, not the environment, clearly—and reported having enough room in their lockers and that the locker room size was adequate. According to the NFLPA report card, the Bears were one of five teams in the league with a perfect score regarding player feedback on locker room size.
Training Room
Grade: B+
Rank: 11th
The Bears received a good overall score here, but only 86 percent of players felt they had enough full-time trainers, which ranked 19 out of 32. Similarly, 84 percent of players felt there were enough full-time physical therapists on staff, which ranked 18 of 32. The player’s happiness with the available amenities, such as hot and cold tubs, carried that grade.
Training Staff
Grade: B
Rank: 17th
In addition to a handful of players not believing there were enough full-time trainers and physical therapists, the Bears ranked 20 out of 32 teams, with 85 percent reporting they felt they received enough one-on-one training and treatment.
Weight Room
Grade: A
Rank: 6th
The Bears scored their highest marks in the weight room and amenities. The facilities at Halas Hall are gorgeous, and the players agree with the eye test there. According to the survey, players feel the equipment in the weight room is high quality, and there’s more than enough space.
Photo: Getty ImagesStrength Coaches
Grade: B+
Rank: 20th
According to the survey, 98 percent of players reported that they get an individualized training plan from their strength coaching staff, ranking the team 6 out of 32. However, players reported that the strength coaches only moderately contributed to their overall success, which ranked 26 out of 32 teams.
Team Travel
Grade: B
Rank: 19th
Most players felt the team’s travel situation was somewhat efficient, and they had a comfortable amount of space on team flights.
Head Coach
Grade: C
Rank: 32nd
The players didn’t hold back on their feelings on Matt Eberflus, citing disapproval with his lack of approachability, time management, and willingness to be receptive to locker room feedback. That was widely reported for months and ultimately led to Eberflus’ demise in Chicago.
Ownership
Grade: A-
Rank: 13th
Likely to the fans’ surprise, the McCaskey’s scored well on these surveys. Players cited the McCaskey family’s willingness to invest in the facilities, contributions to a positive team culture, and commitment to building a competitive team as reasons for the high marks.
(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)Before I wrap this up, I found this interesting: Going back to last year’s NFLPA Report Card, the writing was on the wall for what we witnessed with Matt Eberflus this season. In last year’s survey, only 81 percent of players reported they felt Eberflus was efficient with their time, which ranked 23 out of 32. Regarding Eberflus’ willingness to listen to locker room feedback, players’ responses ranked Eberflus 18 out of 32.
While these surveys are still relatively new, there’s some value in there that teams should take advantage of and use in their process, especially when you have a head coach whose return was in question and his players reported to their labor union he is lacking in key areas like time management and listening to his locker room.
You can check out the complete grades and grades for the rest of the league here:
The 3rd edition of the NFLPA Team Report Cards is here! ? With free agency ahead, these insights help players evaluate workplace conditions across all 32 teams. Progress is happening, but there’s more work to do.See the full list of team grades here: t.co/Dkn4WES7mn pic.twitter.com/WpgG218vVV
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) February 26, 2025 Read More Details
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