The Chicago Bears emerged as the victors in the Ben Johnson sweepstakes on Monday, reportedly finalizing a deal with the Detroit Lions offensive coordinator to make him the next head coach.
Johnson was widely viewed as the most coveted coaching candidate in the entire cycle after turning Detroit’s offensive attack into one of the most potent in the NFL over the last three years.
Now, he’s paired up with second-year quarterback Caleb Williams coming off an up-and-down rookie campaign that showed flashes of brilliance early in the year before a 10-game losing streak in the back half of the season.
It seems to be a match made in heaven.
Williams recently described his ideal coaching candidate during an appearance on the St. Brown Podcast, using the terms “strong-minded” and “leader of men.” He also said that he “selfishly” would like to see the Bears hire a coach with an offensive background.
Caleb Williams on who he would want as the next Head Coach for the #Bears pic.twitter.com/N8K7k4P2wh
— Ficky (@itsfickybaby) January 15, 2025
That seems to describe Johnson pretty well, and after all, Williams did take a FaceTime prank call from someone claiming to be Johnson.
If Williams was indeed hoping Chicago would hire Johnson, he’s probably as happy as Chicago fans are after landing their top target.
