Last year, the Chicago Bears were in a completely different position. Having fired Luke Getsy, Chicago replaced him with offensive coordinator Shane Waldron who had just been let go by the Seattle Seahawks.
For those who don't remember, one of the notable interviews that went viral last year came courtesy of Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba who was asked to comment on the Bears' hiring of Waldron.
Smith-Njigba had a hard time coming up with words to offer any sort of praise for his former coordinator, at first, and his expression was rather awkward after hearing the question.
Fast forward a year and the Bears are better suited for success going forward after having hired Ben Johnson to be their head coach and the one who will call their offensive plays. This time around at Super Bowl Radio Row, CHGO caught up with a couple of Johnson's former players from Detroit.
Lions running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs were asked about Johnson and what the Bears are getting in their new head coach.
The Bears have indeed made remarkable strides in just one year thanks to the Ben Johnson hire
"I think what the Bears are receiving in Ben Johnson is, you get somebody who is a relentless worker, perfectionist and he's going to get the best out of you if that's what you want," Montgomery said.
In conjunction with Montgomery's words, Gibbs agreed on Johnson's work ethic and had great things to say of his own.
"He works extremely hard every day ... one of the hardest working coaches I've seen, very smart ... he just knows ball," Gibbs added.
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Compared to what we heard last year after the Bears' hiring of their new play caller in Waldron, it is safe to say Chicago has totally flipped directions. We knew, from the jump, that Waldron probably wasn't going to be a great hire.
It wasn't hard to tell that from Smith-Njigba's feelings on his former coordinator. But now, hearing Johnson's former players rave about his coaching and work ethic is a breath of fresh air.
Waldron had a hard time coaching his players in the manner they needed to be coached. Like Smith-Njigba said, he's a good guy, sure. But, a great coach? Not so much.
The Bears are getting someone who is going to hold his players to a high standard and work tirelessly to do so. It is genuinely a new era in Chicago. This isn't just an offseason feel-good narrative being written.
Johnson is the real deal, and his former players would all agree with that.