The Chicago Bears struggled on Sunday, suffering a tough 34-17 loss at home to the Detroit Lions. This defeat extended their losing streak to nine games and dropped their record to 4-11 for the season. Currently, the Bears hold the 9th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Thanks to a Cowboys win on Sunday, they are guaranteed no worse than the 10th overall pick and could potentially climb to the 5th or 7th pick if they lose their remaining two games and get some help from other teams.
A key takeaway from Sunday’s game? Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson got a front-row seat to Caleb Williams’ impressive performance. Williams completed 26 of 40 passes for 334 yards, 2 touchdowns, and posted a passer rating of 107.7, solidifying his status as a very promising young quaertback in this league.
Caleb Williams in his last 6 games:
136/211 – 65.1%
1,486 passing yards
10 TD
0 INT
101.2 passer ratingFranchise quarterback. pic.twitter.com/7LFBoo7l8a
— Dave (@dave_bfr) December 22, 2024
It could also be seen as an early audition for Johnson, who has been linked to the Bears’ potential head coaching vacancy in national media reports.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Adding intrigue to the storyline, a comment shared on Barstool Sports’ Pardon My Take podcast sparked speculation. Chicago personality and PMT co-host “Big Cat” texted Lions quarterback Jared Goff, joking about the trick play the Lions executed flawlessly against the Bears. Goff’s response?
Ben Johnson just called a trick play where he had Jahmyr Gibbs fake fall down and made Jared Goff fake stumble.
Yeah, had him the bag Chicago. This man is different. pic.twitter.com/glkh8oC9av
— Dave (@dave_bfr) December 22, 2024
“Sorry big guy. Next year is the year”
Jared Goff texting @BarstoolBigCat after the game yesterday was assault.
— Barstool Chicago (@barstoolchicago) December 23, 2024
“Sorry big guy, next year is the year.”
Did Jared Goff drop a hint about Ben Johnson’s offseason plans?
This cryptic reply has fueled rumors about Ben Johnson’s potential future with the Bears. Could Goff’s comment hint that Johnson, currently the Lions’ offensive coordinator, might join the Bears as head coach this offseason? Why else would “next year” be any different for the Bears and Lions matchups? It raises questions about what conversations might be happening behind closed doors between Johnson and Goff.
Is a new era on the horizon for the Chicago Bears? All signs continue to point towards Johnson landing in Chicago.
@Dr. Melhus Fair enough. The 2017 QB class of Mitch Trubisky, Deshaun Watson, and some other guy was decried as somewhere between bad and awful. (I recall several pundits calling it the worst class for QBs in generations. I guess nobody bothered to scout the kid from Texas Tech.) My prediction continues to be that the best QB from the 2024 draft class will end up being somebody who wasn’t being hyped much at all. Bo Nix is a very good NFL QB1 already, by virtue of DEN’s record, and sure looks to have elite potential. Poles could’ve traded out… Read more »
Barry…. And other sites he’s known as Mad Max 23.
@Barry: You make some great points. A couple of replies: “Audience capture”: for a good example of this, see almost anything posted by Erik Lambert here. Johnson does have the biggest media profile at the moment, but it’s also possible that he has it for a reason. Sometimes the right move is the obvious one. That is for the Bears brain trust to figure out. I feel pretty sure that if George was still running the show, Ron Rivera or Bill Belichick would be in the corner office at Halas Hall next year. Here’s hoping that Warren can get the… Read more »
It was made clear to me the other day, while I was screaming about the garbage fire that is this franchise in general and this season in particular, that not everybody is attuned to a basic fact of how these things work. So let your guy on here Barry break it down. Say there are 100 pundits, “insiders,” and various other well-known people with platforms who end up saying that, oh my god, yes, the Chicago Bears definitely need to hire Ben Johnson specifically because he and he alone is the difference between winning a Super Bowl next year and… Read more »
@David. I still get my hopes up for the Bears. I’ve just learned that instead of getting mad or disappointed you just have to laugh at the incompetence. Much better for your overall well being.