And a new era begins for the Chicago Bears
At his postseason press conference, Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was asked what he hoped their new head coach would bring to the table, and he said he wanted a coach who would push him.
“I would say just challenge me,” Williams said via PFT. “Whether it’s pulling me aside and saying whatever — having talks consistently. Maybe having a list of things we want to accomplish, myself first — that helps the team. From there, help find ways to set goals. However it might work out, just challenge. Find ways to help better myself and better the team. Really excited about that.”
Williams didn’t always get the hard coaching he needed as a rookie.
It was reported that 2024 offensive coordinator Shane Waldron took a laid-back approach, which clearly caused some of the details to slip. Veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen said Waldron was “too nice” and that the players weren’t always held accountable.
Head coach Matt Eberflus also had an accountability problem, as evidenced by his several postgame explanations after losses.
That’s not a good environment for a rookie quarterback, let alone one who strives for greatness. Despite the ineptness around him, he was still able to put together one of the better seasons as a passer in team history.
Last week, Williams was a guest on the St. Brown Brothers Podcast, and Detroit Lions wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown asked him what he wanted in a new head coach.
Besides saying he “selfishly” wanted an offensive guy to learn from and grow with, he also said he wanted a “strong-minded leader of men.”
“I think that’s a cool thing with what y’all got over there in Detroit,” Williams said about Amon-Ra’s head coach, Dan Campbell.
Campbell’s offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson, is set to become the next head coach of the Chicago Bears, and that’s also who Caleb wanted.
Last week, Williams was catfished by someone impersonating Johnson, and his disappointed reaction went viral. He discussed the incident on the St. Brown Brothers Podcast, which allowed him to elaborate again on the type of head coach he wanted the Bears to hire.
“Just a dude that’s got a fire to him,” he said. “I don’t want people that don’t have a fire. I think I have a certain fire inside of me that certain people can’t coach or certain people can’t be around.”
For as much as Williams wanted a head coach like Johnson, Johnson wanted a quarterback like Wiliams.
It was reported that Johnson had interest in Chicago’s head coach job last offseason when it was evident the Bears would be drafting Caleb first overall, but the Bears held onto Eberflus.
So, while Johnson interviewed with five teams a year ago, he decided to return to the Lions and pass on an opportunity to be a head coach.
A few months ago, Johnson said he’d only accept interview requests this cycle if he intended to leave Detroit, and Chicago was one of four teams he virtually met with during the Lions’ bye week.
The Bears interviewed Johnson on January 11, and with the Lions losing on Saturday, he was able to hold in-person meetings beginning today. But news broke yesterday afternoon that the Bears agreed to a deal with Johnson to become their next head coach.
No in-person meeting necessary.
Ben Johnson picked the Bears because of the quarterback.
It’s that simple.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) January 20, 2025
This was an alliance both parties wanted.
ESPN’s Kalyn Kahler, who broke the story about how agents impact coaching searches, recently spoke with Lions offensive lineman Dan Skipper about Johnson, and Kahler came away understanding Johnson’s intensity.
“Skipper told me that he is sure to maintain a five-yard bubble around Johnson at all times during games,” she shared.
Because Skipper told her, “You’re bound to get dog-cussed like nothing you’ve ever been before.” Skipper continued, “He’s one of the most intense people you’ll ever meet, and he doesn’t put off like that, but he’s incredibly intense and, like, don’t get in his way.”
So not only does Johnson have a reputation for being detail-orientated and passionate, but he’s also a heck of a coach who did wonders for Detroit quarterback Jared Goff.
The Lions acquired Goff in 2021, which was one season before Johnson was promoted to offensive coordinator. Pro Football Network (PFN) recently shared some data about Johnson’s time in Detroit and how he helped turn Goff’s career around. According to their Quarterback+ (QB+) metric, here’s how they graded Goff his final two years in Los Angeles with head coach Sean McVay and his first year in Detroit.
- 2019: 73.7 (C) grade ranked 19th
- 2020: 72.4 (C-) grade ranked 24th
- 2021: 63.8 (D) grade ranked 26th
Johnson was Detroit’s tight ends coach in 2021 but was given some play-calling and game-planning responsibilities in the second half of that season. That year, they were 0-8 before the bye and 3-5-1 after the bye, with Johnson and head coach Dan Campbell running the offense.
However, in the three seasons after Johnson became the offensive coordinator, Goff improved his QB+ grade each season and never ranked outside the top six.
- 2022: 84.0 (B) grade ranked 6th
- 2023: 84.1 (B) grade ranked 4th
- 2024: 92.5 (A-) grade ranked 2nd
Caleb Williams ranked 33rd out of 39 qualifying QBs in 2024 with a 63.1 (D) grade, almost the exact same figure Goff recorded in 2021 before Johnson took over.
In the 2022 offseason, Johnson and Goff built the offense around what Goff could do well in a three-day jam session, and that set the foundation for their playbook, which allowed Goff and the Lions to improve every year.
He’ll likely do the same with Williams and Chicago’s offense, so what we’ve seen with the Lions will be different from what they concoct for the Bears.
In a 2023 article from Benjamin Solak titled, How Ben Johnson Fixed Jared Goff and Became the Next Big Thing in NFL Coaching, Solak explains the meticulous way Johnson coaches his offense. The option routes from the receivers and the various blocking schemes up front require everyone to be on the same page every play, and Johnson is a perfectionist who demands the same from his players.
“I don’t have an issue being challenged,” Williams said. “I don’t have an issue with speaking truth between the coach and I or whoever it may be. Whichever way it happens or shapes up is the way it goes.”
Ben Johnson is the perfect coach for a quarterback like Caleb Williams, and Williams is the perfect quarterback for a coach like Johnson.
They both got what they wanted.
“Ben Johnson has walked away from attractive job opportunities the last two years and declined to even interview with some teams this year. He chose the @ChicagoBears. That’s the big takeaway here. You don’t have to squint too hard to see it’s a major win for this organization.”… pic.twitter.com/iv0acy3UHY
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) January 21, 2025
Jeff Berckes, Lester A. Wiltfong Jr., and Taylor Doll had some immediate reactions to the Ben Johnson hire on our 2nd City Gridiron channel.
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