CHICAGO -- In the aftermath of the Chicago Bears' eighth straight loss, a 30-12 defeat Monday by the Minnesota Vikings, interim head coach Thomas Brown rejected the notion his players had very little left in the tank.
"I would disagree with you," Brown said late Monday night. "If you watch the tape, our guys battled until the very end. Saying we don't have a lot left in the tank alludes to our guys quitting, and I didn't see that at all on tape.
"I think our guys continue to battle. I'm going to continue battling. I am going to continue to fight for them and stay behind them."
The sentiment of Bears players giving up on a lost season appeared to stick with Brown on Tuesday. Unprompted, he made it clear he didn't see "quit" in his team and that he expected Chicago to continue to put up a fight with Detroit, Seattle and Green Bay remaining on the schedule.
But each loss has revealed new problems and areas of regression.
The fast starts the Bears' offense has been seeking all season haven't arrived. Chicago has been outscored 53-0 in its last three first halves, marking the worst first-half point differential in that stretch in the NFL. The Bears went 1-for-12 on third down against the Vikings, marking the second game this season when they had a single third down conversion (the other was New England in Week 10). Defensively, the Bears allowed an opponent to hang 30 points for a third time in their past four games.
Many of the problems that existed before Chicago fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron entering Week 11 and head coach Matt Eberflus two weeks later continue amid the second-longest losing streak in franchise history.
The coaching staff shuffle, which saw Brown go from passing game coordinator to offensive coordinator to interim head coach, and had defensive coordinator Eric Washington inherit playcalling duties from Eberflus, has not provided the spark the Bears had sought.
"I think what I've learned through it all is you got to be on your own s---," tight end Cole Kmet said, "and trying to get other guys to do certain things or other people to do certain things, it takes away from your preparation.
"And then if other guys aren't doing their job or other people aren't doing their job, that's on them."
The lack of attention to detail was evident when running back D'Andre Swift's third-quarter touchdown was nullified when backup center/fullback Doug Kramer Jr. failed to report as eligible, thus resulting in an illegal substitution. The Bears went from Minnesota's 1-yard line to fourth down at the Vikings' 11, and they were forced to kick a field goal.
What could have been a one-score game at 13-7 resulted in a 13-3 gap that snowballed into a 17-point loss.
The ability to discern the difference between a lack of effort and execution is becoming difficult in the Bears' locker room.
"No, you can't," wide receiver DJ Moore said. "We don't know where it's coming from, but if you don't got no effort, you don't got no execution."
What has historically been the strength of the Bears -- defense -- has experienced a major regression. Since Chicago's bye week, the Bears' defense ranks at or near the bottom in the following categories:
• 32nd in Total QBR allowed (68)
• 32nd in yards after the catch allowed per reception (6.5)
• 32nd in yards per completion allowed (13.6)
• 31st in QB's time to throw from the pocket per pass (2.71 seconds)
• 31st in first downs allowed per pass attempt (39.6%)
• 31st in yards per drive (37.9)
• 31st in drives that result in points (49%)
• 30th in pass rush win rate (27%)
For a defense that carried the Bears to a 4-2 start before their Week 7 bye, pinpointing the root of those issues often leads players back to the same place.
"I'm assuming the coaches are giving us the best calls that they feel put us in the right position," cornerback Jaylon Johnson said. "And as players, we got to go out there and find a way to execute. So I mean, overall, we got to find ways to make plays better, be in better positions to make those plays.
"Of course players got the responsibility to make the plays, and I know nobody's purposely not trying to make plays. Everybody's goal is to be the best and try to make your place, it's just not going our way.