NFL
Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has agreed to develop into head coach of the Chicago Bears, an individual accustomed to the situation told The Associated Press on Monday.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity since the deal was just finalized.
Johnson, 38, was Detroit's offensive coordinator for 3 seasons under Dan Campbell. He helped turn Jared Goff into one in all the NFL's best quarterbacks and was widely considered one of the best head coaching candidate in the marketplace.
The Lions went 15-2 and secured first place within the NFC before being overwhelmed by Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders in a divisional playoff game on Saturday. Detroit led the league in points per game and ranked second in passing yards and total yards per game throughout the regular season.
The Bears released Matt Eberflus on November 29 and temporarily replaced him with Thomas Brown. Chicago finished last within the NFC North at 5-12 and lost 10 in a row before closing the season with a win at Green Bay.
Developing quarterback Caleb Williams can be Johnson's top priority after the Bears suffered their fourth straight losing season. The No. 1 pick in last yr's draft threw for 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. But he was fired, a franchise record and league-leading 68 times.
Johnson has a fan in Williams.
“I think it was really cool to watch,” Williams said two weeks ago because the Bears cleaned out their lockers. “During our game I sat back, watched and tried to learn something. It was fascinating to watch. He had wrinkles the whole game for counterattacks and things like that.”
Johnson had strong praise for Williams before the Bears faced the Lions in Week 16.
“There’s no doubt this guy is talented. I remember standing on the sideline last game and hearing the ball whistle past me,” Johnson said.
“He has a pretty fast ball and a certain creativity, can extend plays and is also precise on the field. Like I said, I didn’t really get into it and I can tell you a lot more beyond that, but he was impressive from a distance.”
The Bears confirmed they interviewed 17 candidates. That list included former Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, former Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy, and former Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel, who got the New England job.
Chicago has made just three playoff appearances since winning the NFC in 2006. The Bears won their only Super Bowl title within the 1985 season.
Chicago hasn't won a postseason game because the team advanced to the conference title game in 2010 under Lovie Smith. Johnson has since develop into their sixth head coach, not counting Brown.
In three years under general manager Ryan Poles, the Bears have a 15-36 record with two double-digit losing streaks. They dropped their final 10 games of 2022 in teardown mode as a part of a franchise-worst 14-game losing streak.
Chicago entered this season in the hunt for a playoff spot after making some high-profile moves within the offseason, highlighted by Williams' arrival and a blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Chargers for six-time Pro Bowl receiver Keenan Allen were highlighted. But after a 4-2 start, the season got out of hand.
The NFL's founding team fired a head coach for the primary time during a season when it let Eberflus go after a series of poor decisions late in the sport. The Bears also fired an offensive coordinator for the second time in lower than a yr, with Shane Waldron lasting just nine games after replacing Luke Getsy within the offseason. Brown, who served as passing game coordinator earlier within the season, took over from Waldron and have become interim coach a number of weeks later.
Things got so bad that fans chanted “Sell the team!” throughout the final home game against Seattle – a 6-3 loss in front of a national crowd on a Thursday night.
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