Chicago Bears fans have been excited to welcome head coach Ben Johnson to the Windy City following his offseason firing. The 38-year-old bench boss worked wonders with the rival Detroit Lions' offense, and the hope is that he can have a similar impact on the Bears' offensive success — especially as it pertains to quarterback Caleb Williams.
After being drafted first overall last April, Williams' rookie season was a mixed bag due to a combination of lackluster roster construction and a mostly incompetent coaching staff. In other words, Bears fans have been praying that Johnson has a better plan to help maximize the face of the franchise's potential.
Fortunatly, that sounds exactly like what Chicago's new HC has in store.
Bears News: Ben Johnson Plans to Play to Caleb Williams' Strengths
On Friday, the Bears released a behind-the-scenes video of Johnson's arrival at Halas Hall, soaking in his first official moments as the new head coach. The Charleston, SC native took some of the time to speak about Williams, including the admiration he gained for the latter while coaching with the Lions.
"Standing on the opposite sideline from him this year I gained a tremendous amount of respect for, not only for the talent level that he possesses but also the type of person he is," Johnson said. "This is going to be, really I like to fancy it, the quarterback’s offense. We’re going to tailor this right around Caleb Williams."
Getting the most out of a team's starting QB is a no-brainer decision, so it's nice knowing Johnson is already heading in the right direction. Having said that, Bears fans shouldn't expect an attack similar to the one seen in Detroit recently.
"(The offense) will not be necessarily what you’ve seen from me the last three years," Johnson clarified. "We’re going to find out exactly what our quarterback does well and that’s what we’re going to anchor on."
After being drafted first overall last April, Williams went on to complete 62.5% of passes for 3,541 passing yards, 20 touchdowns (to six interceptions), and an 87.8 passer rating in 17 starts as a rookie. Although that's far from the worst performance a first-year QB could have, it isn't hard to imagine that Williams would've been more productive had the offensive line not allowed him to be sacked an NFL-worst 68 times.
The O-line's inconsistent protection was a big reason behind Chicago finishing with the fifth-worst passing and sixth-worst offensive grade (62.3) on Pro Football Focus.
The Lions promoted Johnson to offensive coordinator in 2022, and it's not a coincidence that their offense has been among the league's best since then. In the last three seasons, Detroit has finished fifth, fifth, and first in terms of points per game. Conversely, the Bears finished 23rd, 18th, and 28th in that regard.
If Chicago wants to improve in that regard, general manager Ryan Poles will have about $64.8 million to make those upgrades this offseason, according to Spotrac.
Hopefully, Johnson's plan works and he successfully takes Williams' game to the next level. If it's successful, it could be the key to the Bears returning to the NFL postseason for the first time since the 2020 campaign.