As if you needed another reason to get excited about the Bears "new" direction, we officially have some juicy contract details to sweeten the pot.
According to a report from ESPN's Bears reporter Courtney Cronin, not only did the Bears always have Ben Johnson as their top available head coach, but they wrote him a big ol' check to make it happen. NFL coaches making a lot of money isn't exactly a groundbreaking story, but the details of the Bears' willingness to commit big money to Johnson may give Bears fans hope that they may finally have the right attitude in the front office and above.
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Ben Johnson's contract details tell us a lot about the Bears' commitment to change
"According to a team source with knowledge of the situation, Poles' deal runs through the 2026 season, and the expectation is he will receive an extension to align him with Johnson, who signed a five-year contract with Chicago, a term that is common for first-time head coaches. What's less common for first-time head coaches are substantial salaries. He's believed to be making $13 million per year, whereas Eberflus made $6 million. As one source put it, the Bears "didn't cut corners" when it came to paying Johnson."
That is ... a ton of money for someone who's never been a head coach before. Making more than double what Matt Eberflus made the year before is crazy, and also maybe a little bit of a testament to Johnson's agent. $13 million is a HUGE number, and while the Bears have always been notoriously tight-lipped about how long contracts are, it's telling that these reports have them sparing no expense to finally get the right hire in place.
Almost lost in the whole $13 million contract thing is the fact that it sounds like Ryan Poles is getting a contract extension to align with Johnson's. For the Bears fans out there who are over the Poles era/don't think he really has much say in anything anymore at Halas Hall, I imagine that's not the best news they've heard today. But Ben Johnson! $13 million! The Bears may in fact be back.