Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has been the popular name in the Chicago Bears' search for a head coach.
Outside of head coaching experience, Johnson does check nearly every box the Bears are looking for in their next head coach. Given his work with Jared Goff in his offense, there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the idea of Johnson serving as the head coach of the Bears to oversee the development of Caleb Williams.
A quick note on that talking point, the Lions' offense is Ben Johnson's offense. With some beginning to cast Johnson in the same light Matt Nagy was in when he took the Bears' job in 2018, it's important to remind everyone that Nagy was running Andy Reid's offense with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Johnson is going to be selective with the interviews he takes this offseason. If Johnson takes an interview, it will be because he desires the job. Johnson won't take a head coach interview if he has no interest in the job. Last offseason, Johnson opted to return to the Lions instead of taking the Washington Commanders' head coach job. A return to the Lions shouldn't be ruled out for Johnson if he does not hear what he likes during the interview process.
Adam Schefter joined The Pat McAfee show on Thursday afternoon and confirmed that there is expected to be an interview between Johnson and the Bears after the regular season concludes.
"I think Ben Johnson has interest in the Chicago Bears job..
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 26, 2024
I'm sure they're gonna request to interview him and I'm sure that he's gonna talk to them..
He's definitely in play and we'll see what happens from there" ~ @AdamSchefter #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/HKo3CDheO5
The first part of Schefter's hit shouldn't be ignored. Based on Schefter's phrasing, it seems that Johnson had minimal interest in taking the Bears' job initially. It's certainly possible that more time has opened Johnson to the idea of being the next Bears' head coach, it's also possible that recent reports of Johnson having interest in the opening is the work of a good agent.
Johnson becoming the Bears' next head coach is far from certain. That's not to say that the Bears won't be able to successfully pitch the job to Johnson once he interviews but it does say the team has their work cut out for them.