When Lovie Smith became the head coach of the Chicago Bears in 2004, he knew he had to convey a message to the fans. This organization had been beaten down by constant losing for most of the previous decade. Something needed to be said that would give them a jolt of excitement. So he stepped to the podium and laid out his goal for the franchise. The first objective? Beat the Green Bay Packers. Since 1994, the Bears had only beaten their eternal rivals twice. That had to change. Smith understood what it meant. It appears Ben Johnson recognizes the same.
Chicago introduced their new head coach on Wednesday, January 22nd. It didn’t take long to realize this was a young man who was well-prepared, confident, and ready for the opportunity. He conveyed a message of deliberate intent. Nobody in the building would feel comfortable anymore. It was about hard work and sacrifice. However, before getting into his plans, he made sure to note how difficult the task is ahead against the NFL’s toughest division.
Then he fired a shot directly at the Packers.
Ben Johnson has good reasons to gloat.
He took over as the Detroit Lions offensive coordinator in 2022. In the six subsequent meetings against Green Bay, Johnson went 5-1. His offense averaged 24.83 points per game in those meetings. Such numbers haven’t occurred for the Bears in those meetings for most of the past three decades. Ben Johnson isn’t a fool. He knows the Packers have long been the gatekeepers in the NFC North. If you want to reach the Super Bowl, they are always the first hurdle you need to clear. It appears he’s not afraid of the challenge they present. Such confidence was nowhere to be found with guys like Matt Eberflus, John Fox, or Marc Trestman. Maybe Lovie channeled some of that magic into him.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Saying you enjoy beating the Packers is different than making beating the Packers is the goal. Super Bowl is the goal and everyone in the division is a rival. Yes, enjoy beating the Packers but the idea is to be better than them where that’s expected in most games.
His anti-Packer rhetoric is required by new Bear HCs. But unlike the others, my man Ben has the record to back it up. And as I already told my Detroit relatives, when Ben defeats the Packers and Vikings, it also helps the Lions. If the Bears and Lions split wins, then it is not so bad for the Lions.
“I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year” 😈
Great press conferences. Love this dudes attitude. He’s clearly very confident and competitive, with a little cockiness to him. I have no doubt he’s going to be a good leader and hes gona push these men to be their best. #Beardown
For as good as I hope the coach is going to be… people got to stop talking about the Packers… and “taking the North and not giving it back”… we as Bears fans have had enough of setting us up for failure with the Packers…just play the game and show us by beating them… dont say anything ..dont predict anything…. just beat them on the field…