5Qs, 5As with Windy City Gridiron: How has Ben Johnson created a winning culture in Chicago?

A trip to the NFC Championship is on the line when the Los Angeles Rams take on the Chicago Bears in the Divisional Round. The Rams haven’t won at Soldier Field since 2003, and are 3-2 against the Bears under Sean McVay.

Before both teams freeze their keisters off in the Windy City, I spoke with Bill Zimmerman from Windy City Gridiron to gain some insider knowledge on Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams, Chicago’s insane comeback ability and more.

Q – From taking his shirt off to give Chicagoans free hot dogs to guiding the Bears to an NFC North title, Ben Johnson has changed the culture during his first season in the Windy City. Could you dive deeper into what Johnson’s impact has meant to the Bears’ organization and the city of Chicago?

A – This is certainly nothing we’ve ever seen in Chicago. Not only has Ben Johnson changed the culture in the locker room, but he’s changed the culture in the city. Chicago is a Bears town. When the Bears are good, it’s like nothing you’ve seen anywhere else. The issue is, the Bears haven’t truly been consistently good since the 1980s. They had a few years of solid success, including a Super Bowl appearance, but they weren’t true contenders with the likes of Rex Grossman at quarterback.

Bears fans believe in Ben Johnson (and Caleb Williams), and most importantly, the team believes in him. He coaches them hard. This isn’t a country club atmosphere at Halas Hall. You show up early, and you show up to work. You have to understand, most of the players on this Bears team really didn’t understand how to win at the NFL level. There weren’t any players on the team that were old enough to have been here the last time the Bears had a winning record (2018), and even a lot of the veterans that were here weren’t guys that came from winning clubs (DJ Moore experienced his first winning season this year since high school). Ben Johnson had to show this team how to be winners. He did so, establishing a strong work ethic, establishing accountability among the coaches and players and an extreme attention to detail to make sure everything is being coached to limit mistakes on the field.

Q – Caleb Williams has seemingly proven to be the long-awaited answer at quarterback that Bears fans have been longing for. Williams set the franchise’s single-season passing record, yet had the worst completion percentage among qualified passers who’ve started all 17 games at 58.1%. Where has Williams grown the most this season under Johnson and where must he improve?

A – Caleb Williams does throw an errant ball more than he should on the gimmes. That’s something he definitely needs to improve upon to help elevate his game to the next level. I think Bears fans are confident that he will improve and that will continue to elevate his game. Most of us think the...