It’s now official: Ben Johnson has been hired by the Chicago Bears to be their new head coach Monday morning, per Adam Schefter.
Johnson had previously served as the offensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions for the previous two seasons. After sitting out last season’s round of head coaching hires, Johnson has found a new home, staying put in his division.
Johnson is arguably the greatest offensive mind in football right now, and Chicago is looking to capitalize on that with their franchise quarterback, Caleb Williams.
Under Johnson’s play-calling, the Lions had six games of 40+ points this past season. The Lions also became the second team in NFL history to have four players with over 1,000 yards in one season.
Johnson has been with the Lions since 2019 and this will be his first head coaching tenure in the NFL. But what does this mean for both the Lions and the Bears?
Detroit Lions: The Search Begins
It was no secret that Johnson was getting scooped up as a head coach. Yet, now that it is a reality, the Lions must move quickly to find a replacement, as they will most likely be looking to replace their defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn as well.
If they look to promote from within, two key names to look at are Lions assistant head coach Scottie Montgomery and Lions passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand.
Montgomery could take on the offensive play-calling role like he has before at both the NFL and collegiate level (offensive coordinator for Duke and Maryland). Engstrand joined the Lions in 2020 as an offensive assistant; and, he has replaced Johnson once already when Johnson was promoted to offensive coordinator and could see history repeat itself.
My sneaky pick for the job is Hank Fraley, the current offensive line coach. The Lions’ offense has been characterized by flashy plays and great offensive line protection. If the organization wants to reward the success while also keeping Fraley from taking a job elsewhere (it looks like he’s a finalist for the Seattle Seahawks position), they could promote him to offensive play calling.
Whoever is chosen as the offensive coordinator replacement is going to have some massive shoes to fill. Losing Johnson could cause a bit of a reduction in the overall offense production next season. Johnson was an offensive mastermind, so while the Lions will most likely continue to have success with the pieces they have in place, do not be surprised if the amount of high plays takes a bit of a step back.
My bold prediction for this offense next season is that it becomes more run centric, leaning on Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, maximizing time of possession and ball control over flashy plays.
Bears: Can Ben Johnson end the Bears hibernation?
When you think of offensive juggernauts, the Chicago Bears do not come to mind. Johnson can look to fix that, and he has the pieces needed to be able to make that into a reality.
Mixing the creative playstyle of Ben Johnson with one of the better offensive coordinators in Thomas Brown, the Bears should be able to develop into a more flowing offense.
Add in the pieces of DJ Moore, Keenan Allen (who should be extended), Rome Odunze and Cole Kmet give the offense a very youth based receiving lineup for Johnson to use. He also comes into a good two back backfield with D’Andre Swift and Roschon Johnson.
On the defensive side the Bears will need to be active in free agency as well as the draft to get some key players there. With reports that Johnson is adding former New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen as his defensive coordinator, it makes things interesting in Chicago.
The Bears should target Charvarius Ward to pair with Jaylon Johnson and Javon Kinlaw to help with their run defense and get Montez Sweat some help on their defensive front.
If Chicago is able to build up their offensive line (targeting Will Campbell from LSU would be ideal), they can see themselves competing in games next year. I am not going to say that this hire will have them winning the NFC North next season, but they could have a surprise Vikings like season.
My bold prediction for this offense next season is Caleb Williams not only becomes the first passer in Bears history with over 4,000 yards, but he shatters it with 4500 yards.
Randy Vuxta
Randy Vuxta (@RandallVuxta) is a beat writer covering sports picks and dynasty/redraft content for The League Winners with a little over a decade playing fantasy football. Before joining the staff, he studied Journalism and Sports Business management and created The Randy Report, a YouTube channel dedicated to covering all things sports. When he’s not watching game film or the latest Marvel release, he can be found on Twitch streaming everything from Spider-Man to NBA2K. Randy looks to not only win every league he joins, but help others achieve that goal as well.