Ben Johnson Assigns Blame for Bears Fourth-Quarter Collapse Against Vikings

Ben Johnson entered the 2025 NFL season with plenty of hype. Johnson led the Detroit Lions to prolific offensive numbers last season. The Lions led the league in scoring in 2024, averaging 33.2 points per game.

After spending the past three seasons as the Lions offensive coordinator, Johnson received his first head-coaching opportunity. Not long after last season came to a close, Johnson was named the head coach of the Chicago Bears.

Johnson, who is just 39 years old, is expected to elevate the entire Bears offense with an improved offensive-line now protecting his young, talented quarterback, Caleb Williams. The duo's first test in the regular season was a stiff one, as they hosted the Minnesota Vikings and their stout defense on 'Monday Night Football' inside Soldier Field.

The Bears jumped out to a quick lead with an impressive first drive and would carry a 17-6 lead into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for Johnson and the Bears, the game would steadily head in the wrong direction from there.

Ben Johnson Places Blame After Blowing Fourth-Quarter Lead

The Bears gave up 21 points in the fourth quarter, ultimately falling to the Vikings 27-24. While the Bears can point to many things that contributed to their fourth-quarter collapse, Johnson assigned blame to one specific thing following the game.

"We said going into Week 1 that the team that would make the least number of mistakes would win the game, and unfortunately we were on the wrong side of that. We made too many there late in the game, myself included" Johnson said.

"When you look down at the stat-sheet and see 12 penalties, that's gotta get cleaned up in a hurry," Johnson added.