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The Chicago Bears finally have some hope for the future. Chicago may have gone 5-12 during the 2024 regular season, but they saw some promising progression from rookie QB Caleb Williams. There is even more reason for optimism after the Bears made former Lions OC Ben Johnson their next head coach.
Adam Hoge of CHGO believes that there will be plenty of changes on Chicago's offense under Ben Johnson.
“Johnson’s creativity will be a welcome addition to the offense, but there will be noticeable changes,” Hoge wrote. “The tracks in the run game will be slightly different, and stylistically, we could see changes in personnel, both when it comes to the linemen and the running backs.”
Hoge expects the Bears to add at least one running back, as well as a run-blocking tight end, during the offseason.
These are positions of need that the Bears needed to address this offseason regardless of their head coach. However, Johnson will likely make these positions a priority given what Detroit has done with its offense under his leadership.
Hoge notes that D'Andre Swift is currently the starting running back in Chicago. He is a player who Johnson is familiar with from Detroit. The Lions also traded Swift away to Philadelphia during his tenure, upgrading to Jahmyr Gibbs.
It will be interesting to see how Johnson approaches his first offseason as an NFL head coach.
Bears hired Ben Johnson without doing an in-person interview
The Bears were clearly very enamored with Ben Johnson as a head coaching candidate.
Chicago did not even wait for an in-person interview to extend an offer to Johnson, according to Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team.
“You don’t often see this in the NFL coaching cycle: The #Bears are hiring Ben Johnson without even having an official in-person interview,” Meirov wrote on Monday. “A virtual meeting and backchannel conversations with those close to Johnson was enough — and they sealed the deal today. Johnson is now set to fly to Chicago to meet everyone and sign his contract.”
Johnson has been one of the most coveted head coaching candidates in the NFL over the past few seasons. He certainly added to his resume, not that he needed to, with a strong 2024 campaign in Detroit.
The Lions led the NFL in points (533), scoring differential (+222), and first downs (386) during the regular season. Detroit was also second in net yards at 6,568.
Expectations for Johnson will be high during his first season in Chicago. It will be fascinating to see how Johnson measured up to his lofty expectations.
