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Ben Johnson's statement about practice habits already resonating with Bears players

Originally posted on Chicago Bears on SI | By Bryan Perez | Last updated Sep 17, 2025 8:34 PM ET

Chicago Bears coach Ben Johnson sent a very direct and no-nonsense message to his players on Wednesday. Facing a critical Week 3 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys, one in which the season can be salvaged with the Bears' first win, or all but lost by falling to 0-3, something needs to change.

And it starts with practice.

"I think our practice habits are yet to reflect a championship caliber team," he said.

Bears players, including Caleb Williams, heard the message loud and clear. ESPN Bears insider Courtney Cronin shared the latest update from Halas Hall:

From @SportsCenter: Ben Johnson called out the Bears for not having 'championship-caliber' practice habits and then proceeded to put the team through a 2+ hour session on Wednesday.

Message sent, message received. pic.twitter.com/n0GmzgUpmA
— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) September 17, 2025

Here are Caleb Williams' thoughts on the "we're talking about practice!" drama:

Caleb Williams on Ben Johnson’s thoughts on practice habits so far: pic.twitter.com/mBgSo21ivr
— SleeperBears (@SleeperBears) September 17, 2025

It's encouraging that this Bears roster is taking Johnson's comments to heart. Remember: this is Year 1 of his regime. While Bears fans are concerned about wins and losses, Johnson's priority (or, one of them, at least) is making sure he has his guys who practice his way and who he can trust.

It doesn't sound like this roster is all the way there, yet.

Chciago Bears fans should be thrilled they have a head coach who won't let his players rest on their reputations. Let's face it, none of the Bears' starters should feel safe in their role. This is a team that only won five games in 2024. Aside from players like Jaylon Johnson and Joe Thuney, there's no one on this team that should think their resume is enough to stay in the starting lineup.

We'll see whether Johnson's tough love is enough to jumpstart this team to its first win of the 2025 season. They face a tough matchup against an explosive Dallas Cowboys team that just dropped 40 points on a quality New York Giants defense in Week 2.

This article first appeared on Chicago Bears on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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