Bear Digest

Why Hiring Ben Johnson Wouldn't Be Matt Nagy Part 2

Analysis: ESPN's Adam Schefter says the Bears could be interested in the hot offensive coordinator, Detroit's Ben Johnson, and he'll be able to prove himself at Soldier Field.

Gene Chamberlain

Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson brings an impressive attack to Soldier Field Sunday. Could it be a job interview?
Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson brings an impressive attack to Soldier Field Sunday. Could it be a job interview? / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Ben Johnson puts his offense on display at Soldier Field for Chicago to consider Sunday, a sort of working resume.

It's not known if Johnson even would be a candidate at this point–at least whether he'd be interested in working at Halas Hall–but the Bears themselves better be considering anyone who can score a point in the first half of games. They currently can't.

While there have been NFL insiders like Albert Breer saying the "leader of men," Mike Vrabel, or someone of this ilk might be a better Bears fit, Johnson remains a prominent name mentioned around the league as the best choice for a team with a talented, young quarterback.

ESPN's Adam Schefter came out about the same time Breer was saying Vrabel makes sense and said he's hearing around the league Johnson will be someone who the Bears find an ideal candidate.

"Many people around the league believe that when the coach hire is made that it will be made with the offense in mind, and that that coach will have some time of offensive background, because it’s the most important thing that this organization will do," Schefter said. “There’s so much riding on this next hire for this franchise, and we’ll see what they decide to do next."

Johnson's offense is

  • First in NFL scoring since 2022 with 1,373 points
  • First in touchdowns scored since 2022 with 169
  • First in net yardage since 2022 with 18,826
  • First in first downs since 2022 with 1,087
  • Second in rushing touchdowns since 2022 with 73
  • Second (tied) for passing touchdowns since 2022 with 91
  • Third fewest sacks allowed since 2022 with 83, or only about 25 more in three years than the Bears have allowed for this season
  • Fourth fewest turnovers committed since 2022 with 51.

Anyone with such credentials must rank high for all of the teams who will be looking for a head coach.
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Breer had reported over a month ago that Johnson was interested in the Bears job last year but they were happy with Matt Eberflus.

What's most impressive about all of Johnson's accomplishments are he does this without a cache of All-Pro type skill players, although he does have possibly the best offensive line in the game.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the league's best receivers but Jameson Williams? A fast receiver but the Bears have three wide receivers with more receptions than Williams. There's Tim Patrick, a 31-year-old undrafted receiver who didn't play in 2022 and 2023 due to a torn Achilles and torn ACL and has made 37 catches on average in five seasons. Kalif Raymond has been a contributor but is out for the season.

Johnson got 129 catches from tight end Sam LaPorta in his first two years after the Lions traded away T.J. Hockenson.

He uses the backs well as receivers and runners and has an offense designed so well that receivers come free almost at will, it seems. And it's obviously not the most talented group of receivers in the league, St. Brown aside.

The Bears have gone this way before, to the hot offensive candidate, even though two of their last three coaching adventures were from the defensive side.

Matt Nagy was the popular coordinator everyone wanted. The Bears got him in 2018. They ran him out of Halas Hall in 2022 after he had gone 34-31 with two playoff berths, a division title and only one losing regular season in four.

Boy, wouldn't a record like that look great now to GM Ryan Poles after 14-34 in two-plus years.

But there is a huge difference between Johnson and what Nagy was as he came out from under the coat tails of Andy Reid.

Nagy never was the main play caller in Kansas City. He got to dabble in it when Reid was struggling. When he came to Chicago he also was bringing the Andy Reid offense to Chicago, not an offense of his total design.

Johnson is running his own offense and has done it for the last three seasons. He's doing it for a head coach who was never an NFL offensive coordinator and didn't design offenses.

That's a huge difference from the Nagy experience.

Johnson would only need to convince someone he can bring out the talent from Williams that everyone sees in flashes, and that he can come up with an answer on defense to an acceptable level.

The Bears actually had an offensive side coach who did transform their attack once and no one seems to like to remember this. Marc Trestman took an offense ranked 25th the previous year and they were ranked eighth as they came within a win of making the playoffs. His problem was his defense completely collapsed and then the next year he lost total control of the team.

Is Johnson a leader of men? If he can run an offense, be the leader of a young quarterback and find people to lead a defense, then the Bears would have a very obvious candidate to pay tons of money.

Everyone gets another look at his offense Sunday and the Bears defense has given up 35 and 30 the last two weeks to two teams with respected head coaches and better all-around offensive talent than Detroit has, but haven't achieved the overall numbers like Johnson.

Even without injured David Montgomery and with Jared Goff's hands cold, you get the feeling Johnson can put up a big number against the Bears.

It could make a bold statement about being a candidate for head coach.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.