Coming off an incredibly disappointing season, the Chicago Bears have handed the keys to the kingdom to hotshot Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson.
The move comes on the heels of a year marred by mismanagement. Johnson will take over the position from former head coach Matt Eberflus, who coached his last game on Thanksgiving against Johnson’s Lions.
Johnson was heavily involved in the 2024 head coaching cycle before electing to stay in Detroit. Many view him as the crown jewel of this year’s class. Renowned for his offensive ingenuity, Johnson has led a revamped Lions offense since 2022 and was crucial to their 15-2 2024 season. During his time with Detroit, the Lions went from last in the division to two-time reigning NFC North champions.
Who is Ben Johnson?
A former high school quarterback, Johnson walked onto the UNC Tar Heels squad in 2004.
He spent his entire college career as a backup, but it was there that he met former Bears offensive coordinator John Shoop, who held the same role for UNC at the time. Shoop served as a mentor to the young Johnson and helped inspire him to get into coaching.
After graduating with mathematics and computer science degrees, Johnson took his first coaching job. He became a graduate assistant at Boston College, where he would later be promoted to tight ends coach. From there, he made the jump to the NFL in 2012 as an offensive assistant for the Miami Dolphins. Also on that Dolphins staff was Dan Campbell, who worked as the tight ends coach.
A few years later, then-interim Dolphins head coach Campbell named Johnson his successor as tight ends coach. Johnson served as an assistant in Miami until 2019 when he moved to Detroit as an offensive quality control coach.
Reviving Detroit
Following back-to-back last-place finishes in the division, a familiar face was brought in to take over the Lions.
Over the next few years, Dan Campbell fundamentally changed the culture of Detroit football. As the Lions improved, so did Johnson’s standing with the team. In two short seasons, he jumped from tight ends coach to offensive coordinator, a position he would hold until accepting the Bears job.
As Detroit’s play-caller, Johnson gained a reputation as one of the league’s most creative offensive minds. One achievement that the Bears surely noticed is how he revitalized the career of quarterback Jared Goff.
Before joining the Lions, Goff’s appeal was wearing off. Meanwhile, Goff’s successor — longtime Lions QB Matthew Stafford — immediately won a Super Bowl with the Rams in his first year replacing Goff. However, with Detroit, Goff had already returned to the Pro Bowl by year two. Under Johnson, Goff has put up 4,500 yards and 30 TDs through the air in the past two seasons. Both statistics would be franchise records in Chicago.
Johnson’s Lions tenure ended abruptly with an upset loss to the Commanders in the Divisional Round, but his offensive prowess was the catapult that launched Detroit into their most competitive era of football ever.
Coming to Chicago
Despite a heavy push from Las Vegas, Ben Johnson will be the 19th head coach in Chicago Bears history.
He chose the Bears over multiple other head coach openings in the league, namely the Raiders and the Jacksonville Jaguars. Chicago is an enticing opportunity for Johnson, as the team projects to have about $70 million in cap space, a top ten pick in the 2025 NFL draft, and 2024 No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at quarterback.
Pairing Williams with an offensive maestro like Johnson presumably was a high priority for Bears general manager Ryan Poles. The opportunity to work with Williams likely appealed to Johnson above all else. Combining Johnson’s brilliance with Williams’ talent is a surefire way to get Bears fans as excited as ever.
In recent history, Bears coaches have been a handcuff for young quarterbacks, which was surely the case in 2024. However, Caleb Williams might be different from the rest. He defied the chaos of the Bears’ rough season and posted encouraging numbers while frequently showcasing the talent that made him the no-brainer No. 1 selection in last year’s draft.
Don’t Define Caleb Williams’ Rookie Season By Wins and Losses
The Bears offense has no shortage of talent, and Johnson possesses the ability to maximize their output.
The offensive upside alone is enough to warrant the hire, but Johnson isn’t willing to forgo defense as Bears head coach. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that former Raiders and Saints head coach Dennis Allen is a leading candidate to become the Bears’ new defensive coordinator.
Allen, who served under Sean Payton in Denver and New Orleans, is a well-respected defensive coach. With the Saints, he produced five top-ten scoring defenses. Former Saints interim head coach Darren Rizzi could also serve as special teams coordinator.
A New Era Begins
Ryan Poles set out to “break a cycle,” and hiring Ben Johnson is finally a step in the right direction.
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Coach Johnson might solve the age-old problem of the Chicago Bears offense. Unlike the Bears of old, the expectation is that the Ben Johnson Bears will be a high-flying scoring machine. Together with Caleb Williams, he’ll usher in a new era of Bears football with all the ammunition to “take the north and never give it back.”
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