Bears set to appoint Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as new head coach
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Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has agreed to become the Chicago Bears head coach, a source told the Associated Press on Monday. The 38-year-old Johnson spent three seasons as Detroit’s offensive coordinator under Dan Campbell. He helped turn Jared Goff into one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks and was widely considered the top head coaching candidate on the market.
The Lions earned the top seed in the NFC at 15-2 before getting stunned by Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders in their divisional playoff game on Saturday. Detroit led the league in points per game and finished second in yards passing and total yards per game during the regular season.
The Bears fired Matt Eberflus in November and replaced him on an interim basis with Thomas Brown. Chicago finished last in the NFC North at 5-12 and lost 10 in a row before closing the season with a win at Green Bay. The development of quarterback Caleb Williams will be the top priority for Johnson in the wake of the Bears’ fourth straight losing season. The No 1 pick in last year’s draft threw for 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns and six interceptions. But he was sacked a franchise-record and league-leading 68 times.
Johnson has a fan in Williams. “I think it’s been really cool to watch,” Williams said two weeks ago. “During our game, I would sit back and watch and try and learn something. It was fascinating to watch. [Johnson] had wrinkles for counters and things like that throughout the game.”.
