While Johnson believes it takes more than a talented quarterback to win in the NFL, the presence of Caleb Williams was a key factor in him taking the Bears job.
“It’s clear that modern football in the NFL is run by the quarterback,” Johnson said. “It’s no secret. You can check the analytics right now: quarterback success is a better predictor of wins and losses than turnover rate, which has been for over 20 years.
“That’s changed, so there’s no doubt that Caleb played a big role in my decision. He’s a phenomenal talent who, like many quarterbacks, had a rocky rookie year. I view my role in as a supporter of him This attack will be calibrated around him We’re going to build this thing. It’s not about just dropping a previous playbook on the table and starting there. thing down to the studs, and we’re going to build with him first and then with the pieces around him second, I’m really looking forward to challenging him and pushing him to continue to grow and develop.
Johnson believes the keys to developing a young quarterback are time on task and confidence.
“I’ve already talked to Caleb,” Johnson said. “We’re going to have to spend a lot of time together. The playmaker and the quarterback have to be integrated. The quarterback has to be able to see the game through the playmaker’s eyes. In my opinion, that’s the only way to do it works. And so we’re going to spend a lot of time together this spring (and) certainly during training camp, and we’ll be able to see how much progress we can make. that I talked to him about it I noticed in his. game what I want to address, and I want to go ahead and take a look at it early and often here.”
In Detroit, Johnson coordinated one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL. Over the past two seasons, the Lions have led the league in averaging points (30.1) and yards (402.2) per game. In 2024, Detroit scored an NFL-leading 68 touchdowns and ranked second with a franchise record 409.5 yards per game. The Lions became the first team in league history to have two running backs and two receivers all compiling at least 1,000 yards from scrimmage.
Philosophically, Johnson wants the same things to be different and different things to be the same.
“We want the defense to be after them,” he said. “We’re always going to attack on offense. We believe in multiplicity – it’s both training and conceptual. We’re going to make things very difficult on defense every week. We want to have the ability to convert, whether it’s 50 points in a game or 50 passes in a game It doesn’t matter to me, it’s throughout the season, not necessarily in the game.
“That being said, here’s what it’s going to look like in broad terms. It’s not going to look like what happened in Detroit. We have a completely different personnel group than we had in Detroit. This whole offense is going to It will depend on the guys we have available. It will take the spring as well as training camp to refine what it will look like.
Johnson, who confirmed he will call the offensive plays, is excited to also work with the defense and special teams.
“When you’re a head coach, you have to be involved defensively,” he said. “You have to be involved on special teams. That comes with the territory. When you talk about last year, why I went back to Detroit, part of it was I didn’t completely understand how making it all work. I’m in a much better space right now in terms of time management, how I can be involved in all three phases.
“The key to that is being able to tie them together, playing complementary football. I’ll be heavily involved both defensively and on special teams as much as offensively. It’s going to be key that I hire people who have some experience in this league that I can lean on and trust defensively, there’s a number of guys I want to talk to and it’ll really depend on who we decide to go with, what that defense looks like.
As offensive coordinator, Johnson will look to hire someone “who can organize, structure and set the table, especially early in the week.”
“I’ve been around a number of guys who have called plays in the past and seen the potential pitfalls that could arise when you approach the entire football team and you can’t watch as many tapes at the start of the week as much as possible,” Johnson said. “The offensive coordinator position will need to be someone who not only do I trust, but who will be extremely detail-oriented, organized and structured in setting the table, and who will also be willing to work late nights.”
Johnson’s main focus this spring will be establishing a culture at Halas Hall.
“Accountability and integrity will be the cornerstones of all of this,” he said. “The team-first mentality is going to be key for us…Ultimately, we’re going to rely on a professional work ethic. We’re going to learn how to be pros here in this building. We’re going to be deliberate and intentional in what we’re doing, and then we’ll get out of the building and get back up.”
When asked what accountability would look like, Johnson responded: “We’re going to do what we say we’re going to do and we’re going to be who we say we’re going to be. And if we fail to meet our objectives,” he added. this standard, then there must be consequences. It can take different forms, but we will get to the point where we win here where our veteran players will take responsibility. But until we get there, it’s going to be on us as the coaching staff to describe what that should look like, what a Chicago Bear will look like, what that professional work ethic will look like.
“I am deeply committed to finding a way to make this work. My core values are really about work ethic, selflessness and composure. I hope that is embodied (in) this team .”
