A year later, Bears' Ben Johnson has been 'everything that Chicago’s needed as a coach'

Ben Johnson agreed to become the next Bears head coach a year ago Tuesday.

That seems like forever ago — and not because the Bears just went 11-6 and advanced farther in the playoffs than they had in the past 15 years. The dysfunction that Johnson inherited — and that forced the Bears to make their first in-season head coach firing ever — has been replaced by a culture shift that extends beyond the field of play.

“He’s been the catalyst for us,” quarterback Caleb Williams said Monday. “To be able to lead us, to be able to stand strong in tough moments and good moments, to be able to show emotion, be able to be who he is and be consistent with that and do what he said he was going to do.

“He’s been everything that Chicago’s needed as a coach.”

Williams showed his affection for him Tuesday on Instagram, posting a carousel of pictures that included the quarterback fist-bumping Johnson when he was introduced as the Bears head coach. On that day, Johnson laid out what to expect — one sentence after he famously said he enjoyed beating Packers coach Matt LaFleur twice a year.

“I do have a message here for the players: Get comfortable being uncomfortable,” he said then. “The bar has been set higher than it's ever been set before. The only way for this team and for you as individual players to reach your potential is to be pushed and to be challenged. That's exactly what I and my staff plan on doing.”

Johnson insisted on doing things his way, stopping practice during the offseason program if players made mistakes. To paraphrase receiver DJ Moore, Bears players decided quickly that it was better to go along with him than get screamed at.

Johnson’s mood doesn’t swing wildly, though — players who craved consistency from the previous coaching staff learned right away that Johnson was the same person every day.

“I learned from the first time he stepped into the building who he was,” receiver Rome Odunze said. “And I learned who he wasn't.”

Johnson is intense, direct and whip-smart. He values toughness, both on the field and off. He ran a training camp practice that most of his locker room considered the most violent of their careers. Around that same time, he held a team meeting highlighting the Patriots’ 28-3 Super Bowl comeback victory against the Falcons.

He reminded his team of both all season, including when they trailed by 18 at halftime of a Round 1 playoff game to the rival Packers.

Leading up to their Week 4 game in Las Vegas, he told the Bears that their reputation for years was a team that folded when the game got close. Then the Bears rallied from a fourth-quarter deficit a whopping seven times in their next 15 games.

“His impact on this team has been great,” safety Jaquan Brisker said. “The way he changed the culture, the way he has been a player’s coach. That’s why you see the players go out and play for him every single time — you’re willing to die on the field for a coach like that and a staff like this.”

It took a proof of concept for the Bears to buy in. They won 11 of 13 games in the middle of the season.

“We found a good process of playing with effort and focus — and playing physical and detailed football,” center Drew Dalman said.

He helped turn Williams into the franchise’s single-season passing leader in their first year together. Guard Jonah Jackson spent 2024 with the Rams and saw a similar dynamic between coach Sean McVay presumptive MVP Matthew Stafford. Like the Rams’ pairing, the Bears’ duo has the “ability to make magic happen when things are needed,” Jackson said.

A season that began with Williams questioning whether Johnson even liked him ended with the quarterback wearing Johnson’s high school football jersey and handing the coach a game ball after an emotional playoff win.

“I’m excited that we’re going to be together,” Williams said, “I’m excited about our future, I’m excited about getting back here with him and growing more than I did this year to be able to have games and moments like this many times in our career.”

As the offensive play-caller, Johnson led the Bears to the sixth-most yards and ninth-most points in the NFL. But his influence goes beyond that side of the ball. His impact on the Bears’ draft decisions portend good things for his partnership with general manager Ryan Poles, alongside whom he will meet the media Wednesday morning.

“An offensive genius, as everybody knows,” running back Kyle Monangai said. “But just him as a person, as the coach, demands a lot of us, but for the right reason. He knows what it takes to win.”

The same notion struck right tackle Darnell Wright, who, unlike the rookie running back, lived through the Matt Eberflus years.

“I think he’s established a winning culture,” he said.

Johnson had a winning season. A true test of the winning culture will come next year. But there’s no questioning how much better off the Bears are than a year ago.

“We’re really happy with the progress we've made and the trajectory we're on,” Dalman said. “But I don't think anybody feels satisfied with the finished product.”