On Wednesday afternoon, Ben Johnson was introduced as the Bears’ 19th head coach in franchise history. Unlike his predecessors, he was able to leave a lasting first impression. With another monumental offseason quickly approaching, getting down to business will be the next step in getting the ship righted.
On Wednesday morning, general manager Ryan Poles introduced Ben Johnson as the 19th head coach in franchise history. For the better part of three decades, the Chicago Bears have been a mess. Their lone run of sustainable success came on the shoulders of Lovie Smith, who also happened to be a first-time head coach. Since firing Smith following the 2012 season, the Bears have experienced just one winning season while rifling through three general managers and five head coaches.
With their former No. 1 overall pick at quarterback ready to take the next step forward, the only logical decision during this process was to bring in the best candidate who could help Caleb Williams become a Top-Tier quarterback. Only time will tell whether or not that will happen, but for now, Bears fans should be glowing after Johnson’s introductory press conference and what the future could bring. We’ll dive into all that and more in another installment of Bears Takes.
1. The Chicago Bears Got Their Guy.
Johnson’s name has long been a hot topic in the city of Chicago. After Anthony Lynn failed in Detroit, Lions head coach Dan Campbell promoted an offensive mind inherited from the previous coaching staff. It took a leap of faith but was quickly rewarded. Quarterback Jared Goff promptly went from a “throw-in” to a Top 10 quarterback. An organization that had long been the league’s laughing stock became one of the more feared teams in the league. That was in large part due to what Detroit was able to accomplish on offense. All of that was under the guidance of the Bears’ new head coach.
For years, the apparent move has rarely been the choice that Chicago’s leadership has decided on in some ways, that ended last April when the team opted to trade quarterback Justin Fields and lock in on Williams. Despite any amount of revisionist history after their rookie seasons, Williams was the clear favorite as the top quarterback in the class over Jayden Daniels.
Unfortunately for Williams and this fan base, the organization also chose to stay in the status quo regarding their head coach. Despite amassing a paltry amount of wins over his first two seasons in Chicago, Matt Eberflus was given a third season with a rookie quarterback. Despite their (4-2) start, it became apparent that Eberflus was way over his head. As their losing streak mounted, so did the frustrations within the Bears organization. After severely mismanaging the game’s final drive against the Lions on Thanksgiving morning, Eberflus became the first head coach in franchise history to be fired in-season.
Despite the six-week head start, the team’s search committee compiled a list of over 20 candidates. The team reported 17 interviews, with additional reports “confirming” more interviews. Even though Johnson’s name had long been the primary target of Bears fans, it started to feel as if the Bears were looking in a different direction.
That was until Monday morning when Adam Schefter broke the news that the Bears had agreed in principle to a contract that would make him the new head coach. Please make no mistake about it: This took all hands on deck.
Ownership had to sign off on paying Johnson the most significant head coaching contract in franchise history despite still paying Eberflus for the final two years of his reported five-year contract. It would have been easy for George McCaskey to rebuff the idea of spending big money and look for another “diamond in the rough.” Ultimately, his feelings of wanting to field a winning team showed in his actions.
Johnson was a highly sought-after candidate for three hiring cycles. In 2022, he backed out on the Carolina Panthers. Fast forward to the following offseason, and despite being a heavy favorite in Washington for the Commanders’ job, he opted to return to Detroit for one final crack at a Super Bowl title. During this cycle, he took four virtual interviews. Many believed that the New England Patriots would be his best fit, but they quickly moved to hire Mike Vrabel. That left the Jacksonville Jaguars, Las Vegas Raiders, and the Bears as his three “finalists.”
Each team offered unique twists. However, quarterback Trevor Lawrence should have been a headliner for the Jaguar’s job; their decision to keep general manager Trent Baalke dashed their chances of landing any of their top candidates. In Vegas, Tom Brady’s presence as a minority owner was severely overplayed through the media. The Raiders did an outstanding job of attempting to control the narrative through reporting, but in the end, their lack of a path for a quarterback was too much to overcome.
Meanwhile, in Chicago, the Bears’ search committee stayed silent. As they worked their way through a long list of names, Johnson was always the name to beat. In the end, Poles and team president Kevin Warren agreed that Johnson was their guy; they simply needed ownership’s approval to make it happen. Without hesitation, George signed off, and by Monday afternoon, the Bears had their guy without him ever stepping foot into Halas Hall.
2. Ben Johnson Is Truly Where He Wants To Be, Despite Plenty Of Criticism Surrounding The Bears’ Search Process.
Despite never stepping foot inside Halas Hall before accepting the job, Johnson’s arrival at 1920 Football Drive was met with loud applause and an empowering speech that was captured by the Bears’ social media team. That 68-second video showed Johnson making his grand entrance, accepting loud applause from the Bears’ staff and giving a passionate speech. Two separate times, the team’s new head coach said that this was exactly where he and his family wanted to be.
Of course, those words didn’t sit well with Lions fans. Especially after a disappointing early exit from the playoffs. Even so, it was something that was notable, especially with how in-demand he was over the last three hiring cycles. In Wednesday’s press conference, he once again reaffirmed those words but was able to expand on it a little further.
Johnson revealed that he and his family had made a yearly trip to Chicago to come out and watch the Chicago Cubs play. Similar to most, the experience of being in the city was what drew him to the Bears. After all, he’s no stranger to this team. He’s faced the Bears plenty in his six-year stint with the Lions. He watched Detroit go from the laughing stock of the league to the No. 1 seed in a short time. He’s also watched the Bears riffle through three different young quarterbacks. If anyone is going to have a well-frame outside perspective on the franchise, Johnson was that candidate.
In fewer words, Johnson acknowledged that quarterback Caleb Williams was a big selling point. He also believes that this roster is closer to competing for a division title than their record showed in 2024. He claimed that of the four teams in the NFC North heading into the season, he saw Chicago as the “Sleeping Giant” of the stack division. Now, obviously, some of this needs to be taken with a grain of salt. The nicest words said about an organization are always going to be during an introductory press conference. Even so, Bears Chairman George McCaskey told the media that Johnson stated at the beginning and the end of his virtual interview with the team that this was the job he wanted.
The process wasn’t always clear. 17 announced interviews were the most of any team in the league. Many had questioned the overall process, especially when it came to the sizable committee that the team had assembled. In the end, the allure of being a charter franchise in a great city was enough to land their top target, which president Kevin Warren called their “one of one” choice from the start. That’s a win for the Bears and, hopefully, a sentiment that can carry over to more on-the-field success.
Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images
3. The Offensive Line Is Going To Be A Priority.
Despite some misleading advanced metrics saying that the Bears had an average offensive line in 2024, the eye test told a different story. Williams was sacked for a franchise-high 68 sacks in 17 games. Albeit, our own Lester Wiltfong credited the rookie quarterback with 15 ½ of this, along with 13 that went into the “sacks happen” category. Still, 26 of those were credited to starting offensive linemen, and it wouldn’t be telling the whole story to overlook names like Larry Borom (the team’s primary swing tackle in 2024), giving up eight sacks in a handful of starts, the most sacks of the o-linemen.
Poles spent most of the offseason boasting about his work along the offensive line. He claimed to be comfortable with his depth multiple times, saying that this was the deepest offensive line room he’d been around. Even at the time, most scoffed at those remarks, but as the season played out, they aged even more poorly than anticipated.
Although Johnson consistently produced the top 5 offenses in Detroit as the play-caller, we cannot ignore the value of the offensive line and its overall role in getting them there. The Lions have arguably the best tackle duo in the sport, not to mention a stud center in Frank Ragnow. It would be unrealistic to expect the Bears to transform their group into something remotely resembling Detroit in Year 1, but they must start spending more resources. More importantly, they must get better at identifying talent. Both Johnson and Poles acknowledged their conversations about how to fix the offensive line.
The Bears will have plenty of cap fluidity to make as many moves as needed, as well as four picks in the Top 72. If all goes well, they can replace their entire interior offensive line with multiple long-term pieces through a mix of free agency and the draft. Left tackle will be another spot in question, but it’s next to impossible to replace four out of five starters along the offensive line in one offseason. Conversely, Poles was in Kansas City when they shuffled their entire starting offense line over five months. It can be done, but that shouldn’t be the expectation.
Based on Poles’ comments about coaching versus offensive line talent on ESPN 1000 earlier on Wednesday, I would guess that the trenches as a whole will be the primary focus of this offseason. Before the acquisition period, they must hire the right offensive line coach and go from there. One thing seems inevitable: Big changes will happen on the offensive line, and that’s a step in the right direction.
4. Unlike Past Coaches, Johnson Is Going To Build His Offense Around His Personnel’s Strengths.
One of my biggest takeaways from Wednesday’s press conference was Johnson’s acute sense of awareness. The 38-year-old hasn’t had an easy road to stardom, and he’s had to learn many hard lessons along the way. After being forced to start over after seven years in Miami, Johnson has become more self-reflective and aware of what makes offenses great.
Earlier in the interview process, multiple respected X’s-and-O’s analysts openly questioned Johnson’s fit with Williams. Although Williams’ lack of timing and playing within structure was indeed an issue during his rookie season, the offense built for Goff in Detroit will not be the same as it will be for Williams in Chicago. After all, they are two completely different quarterbacks.
What should excite Bears fans is simple: Under Sean McVay, Jared Goff’s career numbers were respectable, with a 91.5 passing rating and 63% completion percentage. He averaged well over 200 yards per game but appeared to plateau under a tremendous offensive mind. Once Johnson stepped into the offensive coordinator role in Detroit, Goff’s ceiling immediately grew. His completion percentage jumped over 5%, averaging a quarterback rating north of 100. Instead of becoming someone who could operate a quarterback-friendly system, he became the point man of an offense that never ranked outside of the Top 5 with Johnson calling plays. Goff went from a throw-in to a Top 10 quarterback.
It’s undeniable that Goff and Williams are two quarterbacks with entirely different skill sets. Yet, many overlook how much Johnson adjusted in his three years as the play-caller in Detroit. The best coaching at any level adjusts their scheme to the personnel. Not vice versa. Johnson’s answer was notable when asked about how he planned to architect his offense in Chicago. “This offense will be calibrated with him in mind. This is not simply dropping a previous playbook down on the table and starting there.” Johnson continued, “We’re ripping this thing down to the studs and building it with him first and foremost and then with the pieces around him next.”
Bears fans are no stranger to the hot offensive mind coming in and refusing to adjust their scheme to the players on the roster. It’s a tale as old as time. In recent history, it started with former head coach Matt Nagy. His inability to adjust with young quarterbacks Mitchell Trubisky and Justin Fields was his ultimate downfall. Then came Luke Getsy. Despite turning around some early struggles, the former Green Bay Packers assistant could never find consistent success and refused to play to his quarterback’s strength. The same could be said for Shane Waldron at the start of 2024 with Williams. Although the entire offensive depth chart was much more outspoken, the plan to get their rookie quarterback to gameday was disastrous.
For all of his accolades and accomplishments in Detroit, Johnson must now prove that he can get an uber-talented quarterback like Williams to the next level. It doesn’t help when the No. 2 overall pick in last year’s draft, Jayden Daniels, is one game away from taking his team to the Super Bowl. At this point, what’s done is done. Mistakes can’t be reversed, and by all accounts, the Bears have done everything in their power to get this right, even if it’s a year later than they should have.
Although many aspects of Johnson’s philosophy feel vastly different from those of his predecessors, his keen lack of awareness and ability to adapt will be key components in giving the Bears a 21st-century offense. Playing to his personnel’s strengths is a big step in getting this thing right.
5. Expected A Trusted Mind At Offensive Coordinator and Plenty Of Veteran Assistant Coaches To Help Insulate The First-Time Head Coach.
It will be fascinating to watch how Johnson builds out his offense staff. Judging by the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs report that current Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley is “unlikely” to join Johnson in Chicago, the majority of his offensive staff might end up coming from outside of Detroit’s organization. Even so, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where a “trusted” offensive coordinator doesn’t come from a staff he had a hand in building with the Lions.
Although an experienced play-caller won’t be high on the priority list, the focus on the offensive line and a group he can trust to delegate will be highly valued. Who that will be is anybody’s best guess, but I did cover some potential names in an article earlier this week.
Defensively, that’s where things become a little more critical. Johnson acknowledged that he would need to oversee the entire team but also stressed the importance of having the right guys in the building who can do their jobs. That’s something he learned from his former head coach, Dan Campbell. Although Campbell would be classified as an “offensive mind,” he has built his staff with coaches that can run their side of the ball. It has allowed the Lions head coach to be more of a CEO and be less hands-on. That’s something that Johnson will look to do, but building trust on the defensive side of the ball will require some veteran leadership.
On Monday, Schefter reported that Dennis Allen and Darren Rizzi were top targets for Johnson to bring over. Although Allen has failed miserably as a head coach twice, he’s one of the better defensive minds in the game. He runs a similar scheme to Eberflus but is more aggressive. With multiple years of head coaching experience in his back pocket, Allen is the target that would drastically help Johnson in his first go-around as an NFL head coach. A similar could be said for Rizzi. Although Rizzi doesn’t have much experience, he took over for Allen in New Orleans this year as the interim head coach. Rizzi is one of the league’s best special teams coordinators, but he’ll be in high demand. I’d expect both to be paid handsomely, whether that’s in Chicago or elsewhere.
Although Johnson did note that multiple assistants have reached out to him about potential spots on his coaching staff, how the first-time head coach builds out his staff will play a significant role in his initial success. Fans can expect this process to lead up to the Senior Bowl, but we should start seeing names being hired soon. I wouldn’t expect many coaches back from their current staff. Johnson planned to meet with the current group after the press conference.
The next few weeks will be a crucial part of Johnson’s early success. As Bears fans have learned over the years, building a quality coaching staff is a highly important attribute that not every first-time head coach is cut out for. The good news is that Johnson has first-hand experience with watching Campbell get it right and turn a once-mocked franchise into the NFC’s top seed in 2024.