It’s all about the quarterback. Still.
“The No. 1 marriage in all of sports is the marriage between the quarterback and the coach. That’s it. It starts there. And everything proceeds from there.”
As familiar as that sentiment might sound, those words of wisdom were not from new Bears coach Ben Johnson, but from Marc Trestman when he was introduced as the Bears’ head coach in 2013.
Johnson did put his present-day spin on the importance of the quarterback when he was introduced as the Bears’ latest head coach on Jan. 22 at Halas Hall.
“It’s clear that modern football in the NFL is quarterback driven. That is no secret,” Johnson said when asked about his belief in Caleb Williams. “You can look at analytics right now — quarterbacks success is a higher predictor of winning and losing than turnover ratio, which has been for 20-plus years. So there’s no doubt Caleb played a large component into my decision.”
“Large component” seems to be understating it. The Bears have hired and fired four head coaches in 12 seasons since Lovie Smith was fired after nine seasons and a Super Bowl berth. In that span, the Bears have had one winning season and two playoff berths. Their 76-120 (.388) record ranks 28th among the 32 NFL teams. Their history of organizational dysfunction that is at the root of that record precedes them.
And yet the hottest coaching candidate in the 2025 cycle opened his virtual interview with the Bears by saying, “I want this job.” The skepticism about the way they do business at Halas Hall was secondary, and easily quelled. “Answered all the questions I was looking forward to,” Johnson said.
Asked what convinced him to choose the Bears when he had other options, Johnson said, “The people.” But in reality, “the quarterback” (followed by “the money”) was the key part of the deal.
The Johnson-Williams pairing gives the Bears exactly what they were looking for and exactly what they needed — an offensive-minded coach with a history of developing the quarterback, and a coach who not only liked Williams, but loved him and believes in him like nobody else does.
It’s pretty clear that Johnson fits that bill. The Johnson-Williams marriage is the obviously centerpiece of the Bears’ latest reconstruction. But it’s the best foundation the Bears have had with a first-year head coach since Lovie Smith era ended in disappointment — a coach with a better resume than Nagy or Trestman paired with a quarterback who, while not a sure thing, is a clear notch ahead of Justin Fields or Mitch Trubisky as a prospect, and less problematic than Jay Cutler.
In fact, it’s arguably the best foundation the Bears have had with a first-year head coach since the end of the Mike Ditka era. Dave Wannstedt in 1993 and Smith in 2004 were highly regarded coordinators with strong resumes. Wannstedt, in fact, was the hottest prospect in the 1993 cycle as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator after the Cowboys’ No. 1-ranked defense had nine takeaways in a 52-17 rout of the Bills in Super Bowl XXVII at the Rose Bowl.
But Wannstedt (who was hired by team president Michael McCaskey over Jets defensive coordinator Pete Carroll among others) and Smith (who was hired over Steelers offensive line coach Russ Grimm, after LSU coach Nick Saban turned down general manager Jerry Angelo’s offer) were defensive coaches.
In a league that is increasingly quarterback-driven, Johnson paired with Williams trumps any first-year Bears coach since the Ditka era, more than a generation ago. So while Bears fans have been conditioned to expect even the rosiest outlooks to end in disappointment, with Johnson and Williams, this Bears team has a foundation that is more in-tune with what wins in today’s NFL. That’s progress at Halas Hall.
Johnson, the former Lions offensive coordinator still has plenty to prove in his first head coaching job. Despite his confidence in “the people” at Halas Hall, it remains to be seen if he’ll be the best version of himself at Halas Hall, where other offensive coaches have faltered in that pursuit.
Trestman turned Rich Gannon into a league MVP with the Raiders in 2002, but got more out of Josh McCown than he did with Cutler with the Bears. Nagy was a disciple of Andy Reid with the Eagles and Chiefs, but Trubisky and the offense sputtered after a promising start ion 2018. Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron turned journeyman Geno Smith into a two-time Pro Bowl quarterback with the Seahawks, but lasted nine games with the Bears in 2024.
Johnson is a better coaching prospect, with a better quarterback to work with — at least that’s how it looks right now. The hurdle both face might be bigger than they know — it’s almost uncanny how fate has moved its huge hands to turn hope into disappointment at Halas Hall. The Bears haven’t had three consecutive winning seasons — or three consecutive playoff seasons — since 1984-88 under Ditka. But with Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams, the Bears have given themselves the best chance for sustained success in long time.