The fifth and final episode of “Hard Knocks” covered the final cuts made by Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles and coach Matt Eberflus.

This is how the show usually ends each season. We know who was eliminated, who made it, and who is on the practice squad, but Hard Knocks lets us in on some of those conversations.

Don’t worry – there were still some cool shots from Caleb Williams and enough highlights and commentary to get Bears fans even more excited for Sunday’s season opener (if that’s even possible).

General findings

Greenberg: The real “hard knocks” were the friends we made along the way and the tears we shed. Last week, people cried with Ian Wheeler and his mom after his ACL injury. This week, Poles was onion-slicing when he had to cut defensive back Adrian Colbert, who once again seems like the coolest guy in the world. I think Colbert will play his earpiece and everything will be fine. But Poles’ humanity was on display this episode as he made the cuts. I wasn’t sure we’d see people get cut based on chairman George McCaskey’s recent interview with the Sun-Times, but the “George Edit” focused mostly on the guys who remained on the practice squad. This episode was fine. The season was fine. And now we can move on.

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Fish bath: Eberflus’ message from the spring was that the Bears are proud of what they’ve done and are happy to show it to the league. That may have been a positive turn for a coach who, like everyone else, probably had no interest in being in the spotlight, but you saw it in the cut scenes. You could see offensive lineman Jake Curhan say it was a “really crowded” offensive line that pushed him to get better. You could see Brett Rypien say he appreciated Poles and Eberflus being “open,” and then, as he was on his way to Minnesota, say, “This team is going to do special things this year.” It turned out to be a nice advertisement for the 2024 Bears, with a few fun, short scenes in between, like Montez Sweat talking to Austin Booker about pass-rush moves and a tour of DJ Moore’s new house.

Favorite scene

Greenberg: I really liked the final scene with Williams. The music stopped and he was alone. He screamed, “Let’s go!” and then he went quiet. “Let’s go, let’s go,” he said, seemingly to himself. “Let’s focus. Let’s go.” And then he took a deep breath. It was cinematic and a nice segue into the season.

Fish bath: The montage of Williams’ pass after pass in practice, with interspersed commentary from coaches and players, was cinematic Hard Knocks at its finest. The editing, the angles, and the quick cuts to mini soundbites before cutting right back to another shot from Williams were very cool.

Repetition leads to success 🔁#HardKnocks pic.twitter.com/pFru8LMgyg

— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) 4 September 2024

Likewise, the series’ conclusion with “End of Beginning” and the close-up of Williams should make Bears fans dream of playoff games and Super Bowl parades.

Since we like to rely on spontaneous conversations on this show that aren’t offered at the media room podium, I really appreciated Poles’ dialogue about receiving a trade request for Velus Jones Jr. as well as the coaches discussing Jones’ value to the team.

Funniest moment

Greenberg: Either when Moore’s daughter did her “Cribs” tour and then announced her mother was pregnant, or when Yale’s Kiran Amegadjie and Canada’s Theo Benedet argued about which college invented modern football: Yale or McGill University in Canada. There isn’t much debate between Yale and McGill at most Bears camps. I also loved when Tyson Bagent and Austin Reed joked about their possible lives after the NFL.

Fish bath: It’s nice that the Bears were able to keep Reed. Maybe he’ll do some comedy for us in the locker room during the season. I liked his plan if he gets kicked: “I’m going to move to Jacksonville and work at Chili’s.”

Unintentional humor: Watching the interaction between Poles and New York Giants GM Joe Schoen at the Clemson-Georgia game. The vibe between the two “Hard Knocks” teams couldn’t be more different, and I wonder what Schoen thought about seeing the Bears’ version.

Greenberg: How about if Flus had his own beekeeper? Did John Fox have a beekeeper? I bet he did. As always, I love Kevin Warren’s awkward insertion into the episode. Wow, you think George Halas is important? No one ever talks about him.

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Least surprising scene

Greenberg: Another possibly staged scene, early in the episode, Poles and his colleagues stare at a leaderboard while engaging in polite, superficial small talk. Nothing to get worked up about, but as regular readers of this feature know, I’m not a “Hard Knocks” fan. From what I’ve read and heard, though, this season has been lacking in many honest conversations about players between coaches and executives. Everything we’ve heard has basically been positive, or them telling each other how hard it is to kick people out. I also liked how Flus told people he has “three rules.” Every coach has three rules, and they’re always some variation of what Flus said: “Be on time, work hard, and be respectful.” Just once I want to hear a coach say he has 72 rules, and most of them are hilarious as hell.

Fish bath: It’s true that while we saw several cuts, we didn’t see the conversations that led to them. Poles telling defensive tackle Byron Cowart they just wanted more defensive ends was about as real as we’ve seen, and that’s not surprising. It took until the season finale, but then we finally got a conversation with Warren about Halas. And not that I necessarily expected it, but it’s not surprising to see Jaylon Johnson and Rome Odunze doing extra work after practice. Maybe some of it was for the cameras? But those two would be at the top of the list of players who would do extra work.

What we wanted to see more

Greenberg: I wanted McCaskey to ride his scooter to Schreiber’s narration. And of course, I wanted the cameras to wake up with Warren at 4:30 a.m. I also could have used a lot more inside information from the coaches about what they really think about the players, and some solo shots of Williams outside of Halas Hall.

Fish bath: The only players to sit down and talk to the camera all season were Bubble Guys or Bagent, aside from a few outings with Moore and a few moments with Johnson. I’d be interested to know how many players were asked to do “confessional” statements and declined, and how much the Bears pushed production to take as little time away from the veterans as possible. To HBO’s credit, they made Williams a main character without ever having him speak directly to the camera. That would have been cool, but I understand why his moments came about thanks to the miking.

I thought we would at least get some kind of classic McCaskey line into the cameras that they can finally get to Halas Hall.

That’s all folks 🎬#HardKnocks pic.twitter.com/B1yiUqbLUf

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) 4 September 2024

Final thoughts

Greenberg: *Voice of Liev Schreiber* Like most Chicago Bears seasons, there was excitement at the beginning of “Hard Knocks,” but by the end you’re just glad it’s over.

Many people thought this season was boring – and it was, on purpose. The Bears didn’t mean to hurt feelings, and that’s OK. They’re a football team, not a TV show. Now let’s see if they win more games than they lose, which is a rarity.

As a reporter covering the team, I was happy to witness some of the behind-the-scenes interactions. Did I learn a lot about the Bears? Not really. The Bears should be thrilled that this glimpse into an up-and-coming team, while not exciting, was a win for the organization. Everyone seemed competent, respectful and on the up as far as the football product goes. Williams’ image has gotten a much-needed makeover after all the rumors about his college graduation. That’s a win for him.

And now, thank God, people will stop talking about the Bears’ “hard knocks,” so that’s a win for everyone.

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Fish bath: What will the world look like the next time the Bears are on Hard Knocks? How many Super Bowls will they have won? I can’t help but think that McCaskey’s long-running nightmare is finally over, and it wasn’t that bad after all, was it? The Bears did pretty well. It may not have been offensive or resulted in anything that would land on page six, but that’s what the Bears wanted. Also notable is the matchup with the Giants – two teams that seem to be on different paths right now.

If anyone finds themselves humming the lyrics to “End of Beginning” over the next few weeks, or whenever Williams throws his first touchdown on Sunday with the Chicago skyline in the background, you have HBO to thank.

(Photo: Quinn Harris/Getty Images)