Dan Roushar is widely considered one of the best offensive line coaches in football. He proved that during his extended run with the New Orleans Saints when he churned out multiple eventual Pro Bowlers. After that, he went down to Tulane, where he helped their program become dominant at run-blocking almost immediately. New Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson knew he needed somebody with credibility and a strong track record if he was going to turn around a line that gave up 68 sacks in 2024. Using his personal connections, he quickly landed on Roushar.
The difficult part was luring the 64-year-old to Chicago. Roushar had spent the previous decade in Lousiana, first with the Saints and then Tulane. He probably wasn’t overly eager to move unless given adequate reasoning. Still, he was at least intrigued by Johnson, knowing his reputation from his rapid ascent in Detroit. So Roushar interviewed with the Bears. According to what he told Jeff Joniak on Bears Weekly, the head coach made an incredible first impression.
Dan Roushar recognizes Johnson is different.
Most offensive coaches understand the importance of the offensive line. It sounds like Johnson was the first one to thoroughly prove it by detailing to Dan Roushar how much he actually knows. Everybody says the Bears head coach has a reputation for being a wizard. The fact he has mastery of offensive line play tells you this. It isn’t just about the quarterback with him. He is focused on every aspect of this offense. That told Roushar immediately that this was somebody who was going places. It might be wise to go along for the ride.
He believes the presence of Caleb Williams and Johnson’s ideas will allow the Bears offensive line to be aggressive. Players are going to love this offense. No more playing the passive role of constant drop-back passes and slow-developing runs from shotgun. Johnson wants to go on the attack, and Roushard is eager to help him do it. They’ve already overhauled the offensive line room with new faces like Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman, and Jonah Jackson. It might not be over yet, with the draft still to come. This season could be a fun one.
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Everyone wants to call Braxton to be replaced with a day one starter, Ala Will Campbell, Kevin Banks or Conerly. Why waste a pick on a guy that graded just as high as some first rounders. Trey Smith was a sixth rounder, coached to be a Pro Bowler. Why can’t we take our 5th rounder and out him in the hands of our new OL Guru and see if we can coach up a few guys to be Pro Bowlers. We do not need to draft Braxton’s would be replacement if in fact he’s gonna have to wait a year… Read more »
With no idea of potential issues due to last year’s foot fracture and Jones in the last year of his rookie contract, NOW is the perfect time to draft a Top LT, find out if they’re better than Braxton and if so, replace Jones with them without missing a beat while getting a year of experience under their belt for next season.
You don’t wait until the refrigerator is empty to stock up on replacements for important staples. The same goes for NFL rosters.
Roushar can get used to the cold when making much more money, power, and NFL status in Chicago. As for the food, when I lived in Springfield, I would have the shrimp and crab frozen in boxes and shipped from New Orleans to me. Nothing to it.
@Dr. Steven Sallie Every team has to have both constant improvement from their starters and the confidence that if any starter goes out, a back-up can do a credible job. Yes, Jones and Wright need to get better. How? Players play. They can’t both analyze tape WHILE they are playing or on the field. The coordinators, analysts, position coaches should be doing that incessantly. What was telling, was the reliance on Jenkins to stay healthy, the failures of Davis to show up, the rotation of center hoping that SOMEONE (Superman?) would come to the rescue. Every team has back-ups, practice… Read more »
“. . . the first one to prove it by thoroughly detailing to Dan Roushar how much he actually knows.” This is good to know, but is a reason why we are all getting confused by what people say. Many people quote statistics to prove a point. But statistics are compiled of specific identified occurrences to prove specific points. (Numbers of sacks doesn’t equate to effective defense. It can be one of the factors, but leaves so many other variables and addresses only one). Lambert is neither writing about specific anecdotes or instances that demonstrate knowledge that an outsider wouldn’t… Read more »