Here are 3 things Ben Johnson can do right now to fix the Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears found their head coach.

From the moment general manager Ryan Poles hit it off with Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson over a video call on Jan. 11, Poles knew he needed to do whatever it took to land Johnson. Poles did exactly that. The Bears introduced Johnson as head coach earlier this week.

Those two will work closely together in the coming years. That work starts right away. The Bears have a long way to go, but Johnson made it clear that he thinks this team isn’t far from breaking through.

“This roster is absolutely loaded with talent already and I’m looking forward to building it with [Poles],” Johnson said.

Here are three things Johnson can address immediately.

1. Raise the standard

After the Bears fired Matt Eberflus, players began talking publicly about holding each other accountable. It became pretty clear that certain things were going unaddressed under the previous coaching staff.

Johnson isn’t going to tolerate anybody cutting corners.

“Any time it’s not hitting that standard and that mark it will be put on us as a coaching staff to call guys out and repeat offenders will have to continue to be made an example of,” Johnson said.

The Bears have talent on the roster. Caleb Williams, DJ Moore, Cole Kmet, Jaylon Johnson and Montez Sweat are all going to be a part of this team for the next several years. The Bears need to figure out how to bring out the best in everybody.

The head coach can set the standard, but if he doesn’t hold his players accountable, things start to slip. The players have to buy into that, too, or it will never work.

“That can look a number of different ways, but we are going to get to the point when we are winning here where our veteran players are going to take over the accountability portion of it,” Johnson said. “Until we get there, though, it’s going to be on us as the coaching staff to outline what it should look like.”

2. Build his offense around Caleb Williams

Johnson will not be bringing his playbook with him from Detroit. The 38-year-old coach said he plans on building a new playbook that fits this team. What the Lions ran in Detroit won’t necessarily work with the offense the Bears have assembled in Chicago.

It all starts with the quarterback.

Johnson is coming to Chicago in large part because he believes in Williams. He already has some thoughts in mind for how he could help the No. 1 draft pick elevate his game in year two.

“Each guy is going to have an individual action plan of what he’s put on tape, how we can get certain elements better,” Johnson said. “That’s already something we’re working on with Caleb right now. Whether he knows it or not, I don’t know. He’s going to find out when he comes in for the spring. There are going to be elements for the game we’re really going to focus on him getting better at.”

They both know there’s a ton of work to be done. Williams threw for 3,541 passing yards with 20 touchdowns and six interceptions last season. Statistically, it was among the best seasons by a Bears quarterback ever.

But this is the modern NFL. Johnson believes that elite quarterback play makes the difference. The challenge will be taking Williams from a good quarterback to an elite quarterback.

“You have these visions, you have all these different things and goals and all of that,” Williams said. “But first you’ve got to have the right people. From there you’ve got to go put in the work. That’s on and off the field.”

3. Reimagine the offensive line

The Bears were a 5-12 football team in 2024. There are plenty of areas that need addressing.

One problem area, however, stood out above the rest.

The Bears' offensive line needs to be reimagined. Left guard Teven Jenkins and center Coleman Shelton are set to become free agents. Right guard has been a hole since the team cut Nate Davis. Braxton Jones is a fine starter at left tackle, but perhaps not an elite one.

Right tackle Darnell Wright, a 2023 first-round pick, is the only sure starter on the offensive line heading into 2025.

Offensive line is certainly an area that we need to get better play from going forward, something that Ryan and I have already talked about."

—  Ben Johnson, Bears head coach

“Offensive line is certainly an area that we need to get better play from going forward, something that Ryan and I have already talked about,” Johnson said. “We will develop a plan of attack for how to get that done, but I’m looking forward to getting an excellent offensive line coach in the building to help develop the young talent that we already have on the roster, and we will certainly talk about acquiring talent to bolster that unit as well.”

The Lions offensive line took time to build. That group has four former first-round picks in the starting lineup, including three drafted by the Lions (dating back to the 2016 draft).

It will take time.

The Bears have money to spend now. More than $66 million in salary cap space, per OverTheCap.com. They have three picks in the top 41 of the 2025 draft. Johnson and Poles need to put their heads together and make the offensive line a top priority.