There is hope that the Chicago Bears may start to become very competitive soon after they hired Ben Johnson, the former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator, to be their head coach.
Johnson, along with Lions head coach Dan Campbell, did a remarkable job transforming a Lions franchise that had been bad or mediocre for about 30 years into a Super Bowl contender in a short amount of time.
Now, he will be tasked with molding Caleb Williams, the quarterback who is coming off a frustrating rookie year, into a star while getting the most out of a rather talented team that went 5-12 this season.
According to Bears chairman George McCaskey, the first thing Johnson said when the two met to discuss the team’s head coaching job was, “I want this job,” per Dave.
George McCaskey said the first thing that Ben Johnson said in his interview was “I want this job.” pic.twitter.com/HJnck9N0gM
— Dave (@dave_bfr) January 22, 2025
In addition to helping to turn around the Lions and make them into an offensive powerhouse, Johnson is also often credited with helping Lions quarterback Jared Goff raise his game over the last two or three years.
Goff’s poor performance in this past weekend’s playoff loss to the Washington Commanders aside, he put together the best season of his career in 2024 with 4,629 passing yards, 37 passing touchdowns and a 72.4 percent pass completion rate.
In addition to Williams, who is considered to be brimming with natural talent, the Bears have three gifted wide receivers in Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze and D.J. Moore and a couple of viable pieces on defense.
They will have the No. 10 pick in April’s draft, as well as a ton of space they can use to address some of their roster needs this offseason.
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