Windy City Gridiron
Let’s get it out of the way; the Bears are 2-18 in their last 20 matchups against the Packers. The likes of Matt Eberflus, Matt Nagy, John Fox, and Marc Trestman have a combined for a 4-20 record, which pales in comparison to Lovie Smith’s still mediocre record of 8-11 against the Packers.
On one side, we have Matt Lafleur, who is 11-1 against the Bears during his tenure with his only loss having come this last January. Between Lafleur’s stronghold on the rivalry, Rodger’s “I own you!” nonsense, and countless heartbreaks – the Bears and Packers rivalry has been very lopsided.
Enter Ben Johnson, the highly regarded football coach for the Chicago Bears.
During his tenure with the Lions (2019 – 2024) Ben Johnson had a record of 6-6. While he was the Offensive Coordinator, he was 5-1. So while we are conditioned to be depressive Bears fans, there are reasons for optimism.
Ben Johnson has already seemingly changed the culture of an organization that was devoid of it in the decade plus since Lovie was unceremoniously fired. But can he change the narrative of the biggest rivalry in the sport?
I was careful not to use the word “can” and instead use the word “will.” Of course Ben Johnson can change this culture, but will he? Is his aura stronger than that of the Chicago Bears stink?
Personally, I think yes.
As much as I loathe the Green Bay Packers, I can’t help but recognize them as undeniably consistent with their contention. It’s an organization that continues to find good coaches, good quarterbacks, and good talent evaluators. While their top end success is limited (and a primary talking point of us Bears fans) you cannot deny their winning status.
The Bears on the other hand have been very good at squandering good collections of talent. The peaks of 1985, 2006, 2012, and 2018 were far too brief, and indicative of an organization that doesn’t know how to sustain success, but rather collect talent that can occasionally galvanize. The hope is that the marriage of Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles can create ongoing success and stability that the franchise hasn’t known for many decades.
The initial returns on Ben Johnson have shown me something that outshines any other point of analysis: Ben Johnson knows how to win.
Everything else is window dressing. Ben Johnson has shown that he knows how to get a team to buy in. He knows how to manage a game in his favor. He knows how to scout his opponents. He knows how to use his personnel.
The talent difference from last year to this year has absolutely been raised, but the ability to employ, inspire, and challenge that talent is vastly different.
As such, I have a ton of faith in Ben Johnson’s ability to flip this rivalry on its head. I do think that the Bears have a good chance to win on Sunday, and...
