LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Immediately after the loss to the Detroit Lions in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs, it didn’t take long for Ben Johnson to realize where he wanted to continue his career.
In the eyes of Johnson, who served as Detroit’s offensive coordinator from 2022 to 2024, the Chicago Bears were a “sleeping giant.” Johnson said he has game-planned against NFC North opponents in each of the past three seasons, but no team in the division had more concerns than Chicago.
And of course, with Caleb Williams, the offensive structure within the organization that he would be leading to overcome a dismal 5-12 record was especially interesting.
“Having a quarterback helps,” Johnson said with a smile.
Johnson, 38, was introduced Wednesday at Halas Hall as the 19th head coach in the Bears’ 105-year history. After leading the Lions to the No. 1 seed in the NFC and building an offense in which quarterback Jared Goff racked up three straight seasons of 4,000 yards and a total QBR of 64 in 51 regular-season starts (Goff was the only offensive play-caller in six Johnson is now tasked with doing the same for Williams.
Just don’t expect Chicago’s offense to be a direct copy of what ran in Detroit.
“There’s no question that Caleb had a huge influence on my decision,” Johnson said. “He’s an incredible talent and like many quarterbacks, he had a rocky rookie year. I see my role as his supporter. This offense is built with him in mind. This is not just dropping the previous playbook on the table and starting from there. We’re going to tear this down completely and build it with him first. First, and then the parts around him. ”
That mentality excited Williams. Williams was driving Monday afternoon when he received a call from the team’s higher-ups about plans to hire Johnson. Williams said he exclaimed with excitement at the “clarity” this decision brought to the offseason.
“Obviously I’m really excited about the Bears and this organization and being able to make this happen and keep Ben Johnson as our coach for a long time,” Williams said.
Before the former Lions offensive coordinator’s virtual interview with the Bears on Jan. 11, Williams said Johnson was pranked about being hired before the new head coach asked him to verify his identity before calling him on FaceTime. He said he sent a photo of his face via text message.
Johnson has already stressed to the 23-year-old quarterback that the system he designs in Chicago will play to his strengths.
“He said it would be my crime,” Williams said. “He’s going to build around me, but at the same time he’s going to test me. He’s going to challenge me in the offseason. He’s going to teach me what worked in the NFL, what worked well, and what he wants me to do better.” What you want me to do, etc.” At the end of the day, if it doesn’t work for me, if it doesn’t work with me, it won’t be there, and our entire staff. . ”
Williams added, “Not every player is Jared Goff, but you are who you are. That’s important. We understand that and want to build around me and the other talent on this team. If you can have a coach who is a wide receiver , a special wide receiver, all these aspects of the team and offense work in our favor and it’s great that he understands that because it brings a new level of excitement. ‘Now it’s ours.’
Williams, who is training in Florida, attended Johnson’s induction press conference along with Bears wide receivers DJ Moore, Roma Odunze and tight end Cole Kmet. Johnson took the time to thank the members of the Bears he met with, from general manager Ryan Pauls to president and CEO Kevin Warren to chairman George McCaskey, while also thanking the young quarterback. He conveyed a message to Buck.
“Everyone wants to talk about quarterback and Caleb. I’m excited to work with you, but it takes more than just you. And there are a lot of pieces already in place. Masu.”
One area Johnson is looking to upgrade quickly is Chicago’s offensive line. Williams struggled with holding onto the ball too much and had poor pass protection, leading to him being sacked by a quarterback a league-high 68 times in 2024.
Coach Johnson said Chicago’s offense “isn’t going to be what it was in Detroit,” but one of the Lions’ biggest strengths is the play of the offensive line. Preliminary talks have already begun on how to strengthen that unit for Williams’ second season.
“I think the offensive line is definitely an area where we need to play better going forward. Ryan and I have already talked about that,” Johnson said. “We will develop an offensive plan on how to accomplish that, and we look forward to adding an excellent offensive line coach to the team to help develop the young talent we already have on our roster.” The same goes for acquiring talent to strengthen that unit. But I’ve certainly been blessed with the people I’ve worked with over the past few years. And I want to recreate that here as well. ”
