A long time has passed since then chicago bears Other teams actually hired the coach they wanted. The world is littered with Marc Trestman history, but you have to go all the way back to the hiring of Mike Ditka in 1982 for the Bears to actually find a coach that other teams were interested in.
On Monday, Ben Johnson, the architect of the NFL's No. 1 offense, detroit lions He was in the NFC North to lead the Bears.
Johnson, the most popular player on the market, was linked to interviews with the Jets, Saints, Jaguars, Cowboys and Raiders, all of whom were looking for a new leader. This took place after the 2024 cycle, when many other teams were interested in interviewing Johnson, only to be rebuffed by Johnson's decision to remain in Detroit.
It's a great day to be a Bears fan. Giving Caleb Williams to Ben Johnson is like handing a $20,000 saxophone to a trained musician after letting a struggling kid in an elementary school brass band play it for a year. There is no doubt that Johnson's arrival will revolutionize Chicago's offense, but while it may be easy to get caught up in the excitement, there are still serious concerns about whether Johnson will fit on the Bears' roster, which could backfire. There is a possibility that it will appear.
Why Ben Johnson is the best possible addition for the Bears
Every coach in the NFL has an identity, but the best coaches don't get caught up in this ideal when it's clear there's a better path. Ben Johnson epitomized this in Detroit, putting the brakes on his pre-snap creativity early and slowly building Jared Goff into a juggernaut.
Johnson's most encouraging trait as a coach and potential franchise builder is the instructional quality of his coaching style. Every year in Detroit, he would focus on one layer of the offense and then move on to another. The 2024 season was when it all came together and we could see the fruits of our labor. The end result was an offense that ranked first in the NFL in scoring, second in passing, and sixth in rushing.
While the Lions' transformation was systemic, Goff's growth exemplified what Johnson did offensively. If you compare the 2021 season of quarterbacks before Johnson to now, you'll see that they are two different players.
- Jared Goff (2021): 3,245 yards, cmp 67.2%, 19 TD, 8 INT
- Jared Goff (2024): 4,629 yards, cmp 72.4%, 37 TD, 12 INT
When Johnson arrived in Detroit, he immediately worked to strengthen the offensive line, then set out to make Goff a more capable quarterback, then tweaked the wide receivers, and finally introduced a new running game. It's the slow-burn approach needed to see the offense steadily grow, and he had the freedom to build it over time. That's why Johnson didn't want to abandon the Lions a year ago, and instead wanted to finish watching everything come together.
If the same approach is applied (and works) in Chicago, we could be in for a very special season for the Bears.
Why Ben Jonson terrible fit
Comparisons between Jared Goff and Caleb Williams end with the fact that they are former first overall picks who played on college teams in California. When Johnson arrived in Detroit, Goff was a humble and scarred former star. Five years in Los Angeles and a Super Bowl berth showed flashes of brilliance, but he was clearly told. do not have This is the guy the Rams traded to the Lions in the Matthew Stafford trade and immediately won a championship.
Goff was at a crossroads. He could either slowly fade into obscurity like many former No. 1 picks, or he could sit back and do everything asked of him and remain a solid starter in the NFL. When Goff became Ben Johnson's on-field extension, that's exactly what he did. From pre-snap reads to play execution, Goff served as a football robot given the codes by the offensive coordinator.
This kind of language is often thought to be derogatory, but that's not the case. It takes a deep level of understanding, ability, and learning to fully internalize an offensive game plan and be able to execute it like Goff did under Johnson. We've seen these traits in Tom Brady, Matt Ryan, Philip Rivers, arguably legendary quarterbacks.
But how does this approach mesh with Caleb Williams? That's the million-dollar question in Chicago. Williams is a very different kind of player, whose greatest attribute is his skill as a playmaker and improviser, throwing from the platform and creating something out of nothing. Williams tends to call his own numbers on plays to gain yards on his feet, refusing to throw the ball away and quit on downs (often to his detriment).
Continuing with my saxophone analogy, Williams seems like a great instrument for someone to use, but now he's been put in the hands of a classical musician and asked to play jazz. It might work, but there will be some nasty growing pains. It will be incumbent on Johnson to learn how to take advantage of Williams' deep athleticism and seemingly superhuman talent for creating post snaps and keep those abilities in his toolbox as tools, though. First of all, he will rely on the game plan given to him.
Another aspect is that Williams needs to develop further as a deep passer. Despite his impressive rookie numbers, digging deeper it was pretty bleak how Williams got a garden. Williams averaged just 3.5 air yards in 2024, and while his completion percentage definitely improved, he passed a lot but had little effect. He ranks 49th in the NFL this season among passers and 30th among quarterbacks who have started at least 10 games.
Additionally, Williams led the NFL in poor throws (passes where the receiver was open but couldn't catch the ball) with 110. It will take a significant amount of work for Williams to become a better downfield passer while also halting his tendencies. Gets a deep sack trying to extend the play.
Some of these issues also exist with DJ Moore. One of Moore's best traits as a receiver is his knack for getting open downfield with broken plays. He always comes out at the top of his routes, finds weaknesses in the defense and makes the opponent pay. The transition will be easier for the Bears' top receiver, but he will also need to be a better route runner and have a crisper release to fill Johnson's game plan.
Another cause for concern is Chicago's current lack of talent on the offensive line. When Johnson began revamping the line in Detroit, he was gifted with the talent of Penei Sewell, Taylor Decker and Frank Ragnow, three top-tier office players who were exactly in need of coaching. The same can't be said for the Bears' current roster, which will likely have some growing pains as well. This unit will take much longer to develop, so Johnson needs the freedom (and more importantly, the time) to do this without pressure.
There's just a chance here that while Johnson inherited some talent, it's not quite right. Kindness He has the talent to repeat the success he had in Detroit.
Expected value needs to be measured
Chicago fans, and more importantly the Bears' front office, need to understand that this is a slow burn. There is so much work to be done on the Bears' roster that even the world's greatest coach will take time to turn this situation around.
It is highly unlikely that we will see such a rapid turnaround. commander of washington We did it this season too. The organization had a wealth of underutilized talent that could be taken to the next level. The Bears have standout players at some positions, but vacancies at others.
Ben Johnson will need at least three seasons to turn this around. The goal is to make incremental improvements from last year, so the Bears will be ready to compete when (and if) the window against the Lions closes. That's the good side of this scenario.
For what it's worth: I think this will work. Johnson is too talented to take this job without having confidence that he can deliver results. But there's still a chance this won't work out if Chicago's current personnel can't develop into the type of player Johnson can win against. That would require a complete lack of ego from GM Ryan Pauls to admit he made some bad decisions, but it would also require the coach and GM to be in sync on roster changes. If so, it might work.
It will be interesting to see what the Chicago Bears do next.
