Ben Johnson could just be another name in the cycle. Instead, his confidence should give Bears fans hope

“I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.”

Somebody got the memo to mention the Packers in his introductory press conference.

Two days after Ben Johnson became the new Bears head coach, Halas Hall was filled with excitement due to the newly charted path for the franchise.

We witnessed a coach speak clearly, be prepared with well thought out answers, and sound like a genuine human being instead of the robotic presences we have grown accustomed to in this city.

For those who have supported the Bears for any length of time, Wednesday’s press conference festivities dug into old wounds. Beat reporters lamented the numerous introductory press conferences they have covered in the last 15 years. Fans picked apart George McCaskey’s remarks and disposition towards another hiring process.

And there were plenty of words that made us all cringe.

“Our entire organization is fired up about Ben Johnson.” - Ryan Poles

“The whole key to this is being able to tie them together and play complementary football.” - Ben Johnson

“It’s time on task. It’s trust.” - Ben Johnson

“This place is special. These people are special.” - Ben Johnson

The Ryan Pace and Matt Eberflus flashbacks rubbed me the wrong way. I understand coach speak is prevalent among even the best coaches, but we need every coaching phrase to be thrown out the window.

It’s also difficult to hear that the organization has the right people in place and the roster is loaded. It aligns too much with Ted Phillips’ 2021 quip that they haven’t won enough games despite everything being perfect.

Ben Johnson is the 6th Bears head coach in the last 14 years (excluding interim head coach Thomas Brown). The cycle of failed regimes has been spinning for too long. Why should we ever believe this will end?

Ryan and Ryan

Ryan Pace and Ryan Poles had an eerily similar first 3 years as Bears GM. Besides representing the “Ryan” portion of George McCaskey’s football guys, they each stepped into a messy situation and were given a long leash from ownership.

Pace inherited a broken locker room with no defensive talent. The 55-14 nightmare in 2014 at Lambeau Field prompted a McCaskey family meeting about Phil Emery and Marc Trestman’s unprofessional football program.

Poles inherited Pace’s mess with dead cap on the books and virtually no talent remaining from the 2018 Bears. The defense was declining, and Matt Nagy’s offense was pedestrian despite his “guru” status.

Pace started a full rebuild and was given the greenlight to hire a 2nd coach after 3 seasons, and Poles found himself in the same situation. They each drafted their QB before their 3rd season. There was enough talent on the newly formed rosters to warrant a coaching search and a more comprehensive plan to build a winner.

Pace’s 2nd coach ended up having a 12-win season and winning Coach of the Year. So, maybe Ben Johnson will be a home run. But that 2018 magic ran out quickly and was the only winning season in Pace’s 7 years on the job. What if we are just 4 years away from cleaning house again?

Coaching Carousel

Every head coach since Lovie Smith was an unexpected hire.

Marc Trestman was poached from Canada, John Fox was nearly on the beach for retirement, Matt Nagy was down a few rungs from Andy Reid, and Matt Eberflus was an average defensive coordinator. The Bears don’t hire obvious candidates.

Instead of searching for the best coordinators or accomplished head coaches who happen to be moving on for new opportunities, they create lists of ordinary sounding names who were mentioned by an 80-year old consultant as being a good guy. The process has never made sense, and the results have been even worse.

Even the offensive/defensive background has alternated like clockwork. When your head coach doesn’t win enough games, I guess you have to fix the other side of the ball first and foremost.

Lovie: Defense, Trestman: Offense, Fox: Defense, Nagy: Offense, Eberflus: Defense, Johnson: Offense

Incompetency has reigned in Chicago since Lovie was fired.

Trestman showed up and mistakenly said he wanted a “selfish and undisciplined” team, and, well, he got it. Fox talked about overproducing understated expectations, and, well, fell short. Eberflus unveiled his HITS principle and told the players to get their track shoes on. That message fell on deaf ears from Day 1.

Nagy, however, seemed to have his act together when he was introduced to the media. His messaging was similar to Ben Johnson. He was excited to work with Mitch Trubisky but stated that the rest of the team was just as important. He considered himself a leader of men. He grew into every job he had. I’m guessing Johnson never heard that press conference, but he chose the wrong guy to emulate.

Despite all of the Day 1 power statements and supposed confidence, each of these coaches stumbled and ran out of words. They had no answers. They didn’t know the “why”. They were not built to succeed as the head coach of the Chicago Bears.

Confidence

Ben Johnson exuded confidence on Wednesday even more than his predecessors. It helps to have an impressive resume that even interested the 🐐 Tom Brady.

Johnson was the Lions offensive coordinator from 2022-2024 and led their offense to Top 5 finishes in most statistical categories.

Points per game: 5th/5th/1st

Yards per game: 4th/3rd/2nd

Rushing yards: 11th/5th/5th

Jared Goff had his best 3 seasons in the NFL, exceeded 4,400 yards each year, and just capped off a 37 TD/12 INT performance.

Johnson’s success led to him being pursued by NFL teams last offseason for head coaching jobs and was a candidate for 5 teams. The Commanders were on a plane to Detroit when Johnson announced he was staying in Detroit as their OC.

His players rave about his attention to detail, competitiveness, and ability to demand excellence from everyone in the room. That’s a first for a new Bears head coach.

This Is Different

I wrote about last offseason feeling different. I believed the team was different and about to catapult to 11 wins and a playoff berth. I was sucked into the talk and believed the empty hype. The “new” culture showed its true colors and exposed an even worse team.

Even though I’m often wrong, I’m here to tell you that this again feels different.

Hiring Ben Johnson may not work out, but it was the right move.

1. He was the top candidate league-wide

2. He has connections to Ryan Poles and worked at Poles’ desk at Boston College

3. He coached a top offense for 3 seasons

4. He has a competitive fire

5. His scheme will adapt for his roster

Sure, it was strange how wide of a net Ryan Poles wanted to cast for this search. The list got up to 20 names. Any hiring process that doesn’t include second interviews or an in-person interview with the candidate that WAS HIRED would normally be ridiculed. The search committee with a few new faces probably functioned just like past search committees who decided on the worst people.

But instead of focusing on the cycle, instead of hearing all of the clichés, instead of bashing the organization for their processes…we should be excited.

“I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.”

This isn’t a “I hope to beat the Packers” statement. This is proof of competency.

Instead of Lovie Smith infamously saying, “The number one goal is to beat Green Bay”, Ben Johnson jokingly boasted that he enjoys beating the Packers and declared that his mission is to win. He has already conquered Green Bay.

Johnson beat the Packers as OC in 5 of their 6 meetings. The Lions finished ahead of the Packers in each of the last 3 seasons and won the division twice. He understands Dan Campbell’s culture in Detroit without having to bite anyone’s kneecaps off. His determination to stay in the division and play against some of the best coaches in the game may be crazy, but it shows extreme confidence.

This coach means business, and he has the ability to back it up.

Yes, I’m scared that we will witness another introductory press conference in a few short years following multiple losing seasons. I’m also hopeful that a team with a legitimate coach, a franchise quarterback, and a promising roster can break down the walls of dysfunction and become a winning team.

Ben Johnson, we’re putting our trust in you. The Bears need a real NFL coach.