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When the Chicago Bears hired Ben Johnson as head coach, they changed the trajectory of the franchise. For the last few years, the Bears have been the laughing stock of the NFL. But Johnson quickly changed that narrative in just one season.
The Bears went from worst to first, from five wins to an 11-6 record that included an NFC North title and the franchise's first playoff win in 15 years. That success was a product of the culture Johnson created within the locker room, as well as his work with quarterback Caleb Williams and taking a bottom-five offense to a top-five unit in Year 1.
Even before Johnson arrived in Chicago, he garnered a reputation as a mad scientist as one of the NFL's best offensive minds. And that mindset has trickled over into how he operates his team. In fact, he garnered the highest of praise from NBC analyst Chris Simms, who dubbed Johnson a "psycho" as a head coach.
“He’s a psycho – and all good coaches are psychos,” Simms told CHGO. “(Kyle) Shanahan is a psycho. (Sean) McVay is psycho. (Mike) Vrabel’s a psycho. (Bill) Belichick was psycho. Bill Walsh was a psycho. Bill Parcells was a psycho. You got to be a psycho. Period. I think you guys see that in the press conferences. And I mean psycho in a good way. It’s all about football. It’s all about pushing buttons to be better at football.”
That was evident even dating back to the preseason, where the Bears were blowing out the Buffalo Bills and Johnson didn't crack a smile. And that was true throughout the season, although in the postgame locker room, his excitement would shine through in his "Good, Better, Best" speeches and celebration.
Johnson was a highly-coveted head coaching candidate for a few years before he ultimately landed with Chicago last offseason. And not only does Johnson embody what this franchise has been looking for since the days of Mike Ditka, but he's far from satisfied, which bodes well for the future.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears head coach Ben Johnson praised as 'psycho' by Chris Simms
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The Bears went from worst to first, from five wins to an 11-6 record that included an NFC North title and the franchise's first playoff win in 15 years. That success was a product of the culture Johnson created within the locker room, as well as his work with quarterback Caleb Williams and taking a bottom-five offense to a top-five unit in Year 1.
Even before Johnson arrived in Chicago, he garnered a reputation as a mad scientist as one of the NFL's best offensive minds. And that mindset has trickled over into how he operates his team. In fact, he garnered the highest of praise from NBC analyst Chris Simms, who dubbed Johnson a "psycho" as a head coach.
“He’s a psycho – and all good coaches are psychos,” Simms told CHGO. “(Kyle) Shanahan is a psycho. (Sean) McVay is psycho. (Mike) Vrabel’s a psycho. (Bill) Belichick was psycho. Bill Walsh was a psycho. Bill Parcells was a psycho. You got to be a psycho. Period. I think you guys see that in the press conferences. And I mean psycho in a good way. It’s all about football. It’s all about pushing buttons to be better at football.”
That was evident even dating back to the preseason, where the Bears were blowing out the Buffalo Bills and Johnson didn't crack a smile. And that was true throughout the season, although in the postgame locker room, his excitement would shine through in his "Good, Better, Best" speeches and celebration.
Johnson was a highly-coveted head coaching candidate for a few years before he ultimately landed with Chicago last offseason. And not only does Johnson embody what this franchise has been looking for since the days of Mike Ditka, but he's far from satisfied, which bodes well for the future.
Follow Bears Wire on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears head coach Ben Johnson praised as 'psycho' by Chris Simms
Continue reading...
