What Does the Addition of Ben Johnson Mean for the Bears?

The Chicago Bears got their guy as head coach. Ben Johnson is officially the man who will be responsible for leading the Bears and Caleb Williams for the foreseeable future. Johnson was clearly the most sought-after coach on the market this cycle, and the Bears were able to snatch him. While this is a massive step forward for the Bears organization as a whole, this is just the beginning of the work that needs to be done by Johnson and his staff. So, now that Ben Johnson is in the building, what does this mean for the Bears' future? Below are three main expectations that the Bears can anticipate to see come to fruition with Johnson at the helm. 

The Expectation to be Immediately Competitive

With the current roster that the Bears have, this is not a head coaching hire where they are expecting the coach to build the roster from the ground up. The talent on this Bears’ roster is good enough to compete for a playoff berth as soon as next season. This is a bit of an unusual circumstance, as one can not usually say a 5-12 team is a new head coach away from contention, but this Bears team is. They proved it with the numerous close losses they endured to high-quality teams, including playoff teams like the Lions, Vikings, Packers, and, of course, the Commanders, who will be playing for a chance to go to the Super Bowl this weekend. Now, they are bringing in the man who was responsible for the number one scoring offense in the NFL this past season to a Bears offense that is full of young and explosive talent in its own right. There is no doubt that having a young talent like Caleb Williams at quarterback is one of the main things that attracted Johnson to this job. However, there is little time to waste for the two of them to get on the same page. It has been shown over the past decade or so that winning in the NFL is much easier when your quarterback is under his rookie contract (the Chiefs being a major exception), and in that case, the Bears have a realistic time window of three years before Caleb Williams will be expecting to get paid the big dollars. Johnson has proved to be able to produce high-powered offenses, and he will now be expected to perform to a similar standard in a very efficient time frame in order to maximize the potential of Caleb Williams and the weapons around him. 

The Coaching Staff Will Look Completely Different

The coaching has been a major point of emphasis as to why the Bears have struggled so drastically over the past handful of years, and it appears that Ben Johnson is going to do his best to make sure that is not the case on his watch. It is clear that Johnson has an idea of who he wants on his coaching staff, and that was reportedly made clear to teams when he was interviewing for head coaching positions. Obviously, the Bears are still in search of a new offensive coordinator after the firing of Shane Waldron earlier this season, but it would be surprising if the Bears do not see a change in the defensive and special teams coordinator positions as well. Johnson is going to have the chance to assemble his staff the way he wants to, which is a new thing for the Bears organization to do. The Bears have not traditionally given this kind of power to new coaches, but it is clear that Ben Johnson is not any regular new coach. It was obvious that the Bears fell short of all expectations that were set for them in 2024, and a large amount of that blame has fallen on the coaches and front office, so it is a relief to the Bears and their fans that the organization seems to be addressing the issue in a big way. The other significant factor at play here is that this coaching staff overhaul has the potential to set up cohesion between the coaching staff and the players for years to come. It is very difficult to have a good relationship between coach and player when different coaches are constantly flowing in and out of the building, each of them bringing in their own strategies and mindsets. A hire like this has a chance to create stability within the coaching staff, which has not been seen in the Bears organization for quite some time. 

The Establishment of a Winning Culture

The word “culture” is a commonly used term within the majority of NFL locker rooms. It is often said that good teams have a “winning culture,” and bad teams lack any kind of culture at all. While this might not always be true for every team around the NFL, it has definitely pertained to the Bears in recent years. The locker room culture and comradery under Matt Eberflus seemed to always be off, mainly between the players and the coaches. It became a major issue this season when it became apparent on the field, whether it was the clear disagreement between Eberflus and cornerback Jaylon Johnson on how to defend the final seconds against the Commanders or the disaster that took place on Thanksgiving in Detroit, it was clear that the players did not see eye to eye with the coaching staff on a number of things. This can become a major issue because it is hard for players to play hard for a coach they are not fully bought in on. Ben Johnson is the kind of guy that can fix that. It is one thing to be a successful player caller, which Johnson has clearly mastered, but it is another to motivate your guys to buy into what you are trying to accomplish. While Johnson has never been a head coach himself, he has had the chance to be around one of the best motivators in the NFL, Dan Campbell, who always seems to get the best effort out of his players every time they step on the field. Johnson has the accolades, smarts, and experiences necessary to step into a new building and demand the respect of his players, and that is exactly the kind of leader the Bears have been needing. General Manager Ryan Poles talked about the Bears needing a “leader of men” as their next head coach, and there is no doubt that Ben Johnson has the mold to fit that description perfectly. Expect the culture and mindset around the Bears and how they operate to change in a significant way with Johnson in the building. 

With all of this in mind, there is still so much to be decided between now and the first game of the 2025 season. However, there is a reasonable expectation for optimism around the Bears organization now, and rightfully so. It is impossible to predict what the immediate or distant future holds for this Bears team, but one thing is for certain: the Bears have their guy at head coach, and he has the chance to be the most impactful head coach ever hired in the history of the Chicago Bears.