Ben Johnson won’t earn fan adoration from his opening press conference, but it was clear he understood how to convey a message far better than his recent predecessors could. He was direct, concise, and communicated his vision thoroughly. It was an encouraging start. Yet what surprised people the most wasn’t what Johnson said. It’s who was there to watch it. Quarterback Caleb Williams, tight end Cole Kmet, and wide receivers D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze were all sitting in the front row watching the new Chicago Bears head coach.
Nothing like this had ever happened before. It didn’t for Matt Eberflus, Matt Nagy, John Fox, Marc Trestman, and so on. No players attended introductory press conferences. It felt odd the Bears would organize something like that. Except they didn’t. According to Courtney Cronin of ESPN, the decision to attend the presser was made entirely by the four players. Nobody else.
His was among the first calls placed by members of the committee Jan. 20, after Chicago had an agreement in place with Johnson, according to a team source. Not long after, Johnson called his new quarterback on FaceTime.
Two days later, Williams, wide receivers DJ Moore and Rome Odunze, and tight end Cole Kmet were front row at Johnson’s introductory news conference, a sign of solidarity that was organized by the four players.
Caleb Williams was clearly sending a message.
He and his other teammates fully supported the decision to hire Johnson. They’d been begging the Bears to bring in some help to fix the offense. Chicago responded by hiring the most proven playcaller in the league, paying a hefty $13 million per year to make it happen. The message was received, and it appears the players wanted to make sure everybody knew how appreciative they were. Caleb Williams even admitted that he screamed in joy and excitement when he got the news. There is no question this group is hungry to excel. Chicago’s offense has been the second-class citizen of this franchise for many decades.
They’re eager to show everybody it can be different this time. A pairing of Williams and Johnson is by far the most encouraging they’ve ever had. Shoring up the offensive line is the next step in this process. If things go as planned, next fall could be lots of fun.
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As Ben said during several interviews/pressers that they can’t get on the practice field soon enough. Everyone seems really eager to work with one another and to get things honed in. They know how much work is needed and their consolidated passion will get them to where they need to be by Week 1.
That was a great start — now the real work begins.
s o l i d a r i t y !