Here’s what Chicago Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown said Monday after loss to 49ers

Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown met with reporters virtually Monday a day after his team suffered its seventh straight and worst loss of the season to the San Francisco 49ers.

Few things went right for the Bears on Sunday. The defense had its worst performance of the year, giving up a season-high 38 points, while the offense never found its footing after another bad first half.

With a 4-9 record and a head coaching search on the horizon, a playoff push seems unlikely for the Bears with four games left. They’ll play four teams who would be in the playoffs if it started Monday, starting with an NFC North matchup at the Minnesota Vikings on Monday, Dec. 16.

Here are three of the most interesting things Brown said Monday.

On another unproductive first half

The Bears’ inability to build any offensive momentum in the first half wasn’t anything new Sunday. But the unit’s ineffectiveness reached another level.

The numbers were eye popping in a bad way. The Bears had 4 total yards of offense compared with the 49ers’ 319. San Francisco picked up 14 first downs, while the Bears earned one. The 49ers had more points (24) than the Bears ran plays (17).

Sunday was the seventh time the Bears failed to score an offensive touchdown in the first half. The Bears have scored an offensive touchdown in two games during the first quarter and five games in the second quarter.

Brown preemptively told reporters Monday that if he knew why the offense struggled in the first half, then he would’ve fixed it. But he did say the coaching staff could’ve done a better job of finding some sequence in order to sustain drives.

“It’s about us being able to adjust and adapt a little bit faster and early in the game to be more effective, to get the game rolling with that,” Brown said. “We’re not nearly effective enough when it comes to creating explosives.”

Part of the struggle is protecting rookie quarterback Caleb Williams. The 49ers sacked Williams seven times Sunday, four of which happened on third down in the first half. Williams has been sacked 56 times this year.

While how to fix the overall offense in the first half was still a mystery, Brown said the better sequencing would help protect Williams on top of building a better start to the game. Brown also believed all-around better execution from players and coaches would help.

“It kind of all goes together when it comes to how to protect the quarterback,” Brown said. “His rhythm and timing and pocket movement when the ball is distributed, but also us being able to win in the rhythm and timing so the ball can come out on time.”

On limiting big plays

Sunday felt like the dam finally broke open on the Bears' defense. After allowing big plays on occasion during the team’s previous six games, the 49ers continuously used explosive plays to go up and down the field.

San Francisco completed nine plays of 20 yards or more, with tight end George Kittle being the beneficiary of most of the them. He often was left wide open by the Bears' defense and caught five passes for 15 yards or more, finishing with 151 receiving yards.

“We got to do a better job of how we communicate, of executing the game plan, so we don’t have those mishaps on the back end when it comes to guys being open – but also they have a number of different guys who can win and have success,” Brown said. “Just being able to have all those things kind of work in combination, as far as our execution of eliminating some of the mistakes we have, but also keeping the offense off balance when it comes to knocking out their early-down efficiency.”

Some of the big plays resulted because 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy didn’t face much pressure in the pocket. The Bears sacked Purdy once and managed to hit him three times. When facing pressure, Purdy escaped using his legs, ending the game with 11 rushing yards on five carries.

“It’s about us being able to adjust and adapt a little bit faster and early in the game to be more effective, to get the game rolling with that. We’re not nearly effective enough when it comes to creating explosives.”

—  Thomas Brown, Bears interim head coach

The Bears have 13 sacks during their seven-game losing streak, and a lack of pressure has led to lapses in the back of the defense.

“I don’t care what you do on the back end coverage-wise, if you can’t affect the quarterback on known passing downs, at some point someone’s going to become available,” Brown said.

On a lackluster effort

Usually when an interim coach takes over a team, there’s a bit of a bump in the team’s next game because of a new energy and voice at the top. The Bears thought they had that energy, too. Instead, the Bears suffered their worst loss of the season.

Brown said Sunday’s result wasn’t from a lack motivation or inspiration. It came down to a lack of execution.

“We got to do a better job as coaches, making sure we’re coaching the details the right way,” Brown said. “And obviously when it comes to players, [they’ve] got to do a really good job [of] executing, so it’s definitely a collaborative process that we don’t remove any responsibility from ourselves as coaches.”

Brown and the Bears will get four more chances to show that they can collaborate and put a better showing on the field against playoff contenders. He didn’t doubt the Bears' locker room can persevere despite seven straight losses.

“We don’t have cowards in the locker room,” Brown said. “We don’t have cowards on our coaching staff, and so regardless of circumstance, we will come to battle every single day.”