In luring the NFL coaching market’s hottest commodity to the Windy City, the Chicago Bears may have hired the next Sean McVay.
Or maybe they’ve secured the next Adam Gase. Time will tell. As always.
Ben Johnson was introduced as the Bears’ new coach on Wednesday, and the man who pushed the buttons on the powerful Detroit Lions offense will inspire a similarly progressive brand of football to propel Chicago into a new era. Expectations for deafness increased.
Caleb Williams, as talented as we’ve all seen in the past, absorbing an NFL-record 68 sacks in his rookie season as the centerpiece of one of the NFL’s worst offenses, suddenly found himself at his limit.
After all, Johnson’s creative talents were on full display at Soldier Field in December, when Detroit stole a touchdown from the Bears with a “stumble bum” trick play. And NFL teams were so enamored with Johnson, a coveted young, bright offensive mind who fit the profile many wanted, that they pulled him off the market last year and the year before. He was eager to hire someone.
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Johnson, 38, could come up with a new plan for a franchise that is desperately trying to get out of its own way (again) after multiple stumbles in coaching hires in recent years.
Is fifth time the charm? Since Lovie Smith was fired after a 10-6 record in 2012, the Bears have had Marc Trestman, John Fox, Matt Nagy and Matt Eberflus in charge. For 12 years, this quartet won one championship in one season and had zero playoff wins.
But now the Bears have won the coaching sweepstakes. Or so it seems. This is all about hope and hype, NFL style.
Check out the message Johnson expressed to his new players. The bar is set higher than it has ever been set before. ”
Looks good enough. But Johnson, who is not a head coach at any level, will need to prove he can command a room and make the leap from star coordinator to winning coach. he knows. Nothing is automatic.
“Many coordinators have failed in this role,” Johnson said during a 32-minute news conference. “All I can say is that at every step of my journey, whether it’s quality control, position coaching, coordinator, I find ways to change myself to be the best at that particular job. That means.”
Adding, “I’m a football coach, so I can change and adjust accordingly.”
Brian Billick can relate. A generation ago, Bilic was the hot offensive coordinator in 1998 when the Minnesota Vikings set a then-NFL record with 556 points. He defeated the Cleveland Browns and joined the Baltimore Ravens in 1999, winning the Super Bowl in his second season. Before joining the Ravens and teaming up with legendary general manager Ozzie Newsome, Bilic had never been a head coach at any level.
“In my experience, you spend your whole life developing the expertise to have the opportunity to be a head coach, and then you go to work and sit behind a desk and think, ‘What the hell do I do now?’ ”’ Bilic told USA TODAY Sports.
“I think Ben Johnson has been blessed with enough coaches to build the right structure and system. But it’s a task.”
Bilic knows the challenges include suddenly having to deal with issues that land on a coach’s desk, such as players’ off-field situations and personnel decisions. Johnson is bullish on the talent he inherited and envisions “keeping pace” with general manager Ryan Pauls, keeping in mind that the O-line needs upgrades. Of course, he will continue to call offensive plays. After all, it’s his calling card.
“The coordinator job is a 24/7, 365-day job,” Billick said. “That’s all you’re thinking about. I call this the ‘3 a.m. rule.’ When I wake up at 3 a.m., I think about my coordinator. What happens to this protection? Can I let this guy into my apartment? That’s all you think about. In order to be good, you have to be obsessed with it. ”
Now, Bilic added, the Bears need to have support structure in place for Johnson. I wake up and think about other things. ”
In some ways, Johnson’s challenge is typical. At the beginning of last season, 23 of the 32 coaches were in their first head coaching positions. That includes longtime players like Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh, but there are still quite a few who need to establish themselves in an environment where opportunities are fleeting.
No, Johnson’s challenge is quite unique considering the reason his new job was offered. Eberflus, a 2022 starter, was 14-32 when he was fired in late November, a day after blowing off the clock in a crucial Thanksgiving loss to Detroit.
And given Chicago’s string of coaching failures, the mantra of changing the culture is apt.
As Bilic says, “It was kind of a black hole for the coaches. They go in there and just get devoured.”
At least Johnson has seen his challenge so far. When Dan Campbell took the Lions job in 2021, he moved Johnson away from Matt Patricia’s previous staff. Johnson, who worked with Campbell when he was on Joe Philbin’s staff with the Miami Dolphins, watched Campbell build a program that went from a 3-13-1 team to a Super Bowl contender. Of course, he played an important role even after being promoted to coordinator in 2022.
Is he ready? A year ago, Johnson was heavily pursued by the Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders, but the Lions blew a 17-point lead in a heartbreaking loss in the NFC Championship Game in San Francisco. After losing, he declined his candidacy.
“At that point my emotions got better and I decided early on that I wanted to come back and give Detroit another shot,” Johnson said.
He also used the extra year to prepare for his next career step. This included deep reflection during the offseason.
“I was able to think a lot more about what it would be like to be a head coach, in my head and my process,” he said. “Regardless of how the season ended in Detroit, I felt a lot more comfortable in terms of making the jump.”
It was a huge success in Detroit. On Saturday night, Johnson’s offense gained 521 yards, but had five turnovers in the fourth quarter of a 10-point game, including four turnovers from Jared Goff and an interception by Jameson Williams on an ill-considered wide receiver option pass. committed a turnover.
Detroit was riding high and it was a bad time to make a trick play.
But Johnson wasted no time in making his next move. The Bears acquired the player before he even set foot in team headquarters. He remains in the NFC North and has important building blocks at quarterback.
And make no mistake, Bears fans can’t wait to see the next trick play.
X Follow Jarrett Bell at @JarrettBell.