You may have heard this one before, but I mean it this time. The Chicago Bears are BACK. Ok, maybe a bit of an overreaction but I don’t care at all. This is the most monumental head coach signing for the Bears in my lifetime. I’ve had to suffer through the years of Dick Jauron, I refuse to talk shit about Lovie Smith, Marc Trestman, John Fox, Matt Nagy and Matt Eberflus.
This signing, in a lot of ways, signifies a new era for the Chicago Bears. They have historically not landed the “big fish” in coaching cycles. Ben Johnson was that guy this year. No shade on the Raiders, but that franchise is in hell currently. The job opportunity there screams being fired after two years into a contract. It was always the Bears that was the best situation for Johnson, who is walking into a place with a controllable young QB that he should be able to guide along his progression in the way he likes. I think this marriage is about as perfect as it can get. Not only that, but the Bears historically pass up on big name coaches so that the front office can control the direction of the team. If this hiring says anything, it tells us that Johnson (who had a shit ton of options over the past few coaching cycles) will have a significant say in the roster and his staff. I love this. It shows me the Bears, and mostly Ryan Poles, are confident enough in Johnson to take this project and run with it.
I just looked at the stats. And I may need to check my pants…Johnson led the Lions to having the #2 overall offense in terms of yards (409.5/G), #2 in passing yards (263.2/G), #6 in rushing yards (146.4/G), and #1 in points per game (33.2). AND this was all in the NFC North, arguably the best division in football this season. God DAMN. This is just incredible to see as a Bears fan who has watched arguably the worst offense in recent memory over the last 3 seasons. Really, we haven’t had a good offense since Jay Cutler was slinging tuds to Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall. This is a lot to get excited about.\
What I’m not sure about yet, is who is going to be Johnson’s coordinators? Rumors are swirling around a possible hiring of Dennis Allen, who has had a few stretches in his career where he had some elite defensive numbers as a coach. He had a top-10 defense in terms of points against from 2020-2023. Two of those years he was the DC and two years he was the HC. Of course Johnson should get his pick of the litter here, as he was the hot name and that means the Bears are probably willing to shell out whatever coin his guys are asking for. Again, this is a new day in Chicago and I am totally here for it. Up until week 18, I was as dejected as a fan could be. We beat the Packers, are 1-0 in 2025, have 3 picks in the top 41 selections in this year’s draft, and hired the best OC on the market to be our head coach. I’m excited, sue me.
There is a ton of time left in the off-season, but the Bears are heading in the right direction from day 1. With all of the uncertainties that lie ahead, one thing rings true, the Chicago Bears are BACK. LFG.
JMDSportsTalk 
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