Chicago Bears' Ben Johnson Reveals 'Fun Part' Of Coaching Caleb Williams

How will Williams and Johnson get there? Not by leaning on their talent and creativity, but by being sticklers for the minute details and small things that make or break teams. Minimizing mistakes, penalties, and turnovers is a job that both will undertake, but a realistic one, even if it takes more time than some may think. 

"It's been consistent throughout. He's been very attentive. He's been very detailed in terms of the meetings. He's taking great notes, he's asking excellent questions," Johnson said of Williams. "The more we're out on the grass together, we're figuring out what we can put in the morning and what we can execute later on in the afternoon. That's been the fun part of it so far."

“Bears faithful will need to be patient with the Johnson/Williams connection, as their adaptation to each other will take some time. Williams' 2023 offense at USC more closely resembled the 2024 Bears offense than it did the Lions, meaning Johnson is likely to ask his young signal-caller to operate in a manner he has little experience with. USC ran the ball just 36.0% of offensive plays in 2023, the fourth-lowest mark among all Power-Five schools,” PFF analyst Josh Liskiewitz said. 

“The Trojans operated out of shotgun a staggering 95.5% of snaps, and another 1.7% was out of pistol. Play-action is something Williams is more familiar with from back to his USC days, as the 2023 Trojans ranked 11th among Power-Five schools by using play-action at a 40.4% clip. However, his screen usage was even higher, 16.2% (the highest percentage in the nation),” Liskiewitz said. 

Being able to adjust in-game and week-to-week while not veering too far from his style was a calling card for Johnson as an offensive coordinator. Taking his players’ weaknesses and finding ways to minimize those while highlighting their strengths within the system is what made Johnson the most sought-after coach in the NFL. On paper, Williams couldn’t have asked for a better maestro. 

“Despite the absurdly high screen usage, Williams' average time to throw was 3.19 seconds, the second-highest mark in the Power Five. This carried over last season with the Bears, as his 3.04-second average time to throw was the fourth-highest in the league (Lions QB Jared Golf's 2.71-second average time to throw ranked 12th-lowest). His play also struggled when he held onto the ball longer in 2024, as his 66.9% adjusted completion rate on plays with an average time to throw over 2.5 seconds was the fourth-worst,” Liskiewitz said. 

Johnson and Williams have the potential to be one of the most exciting pairings in recent memory, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. The difficult part for the young duo is that they’re expected to win now.

Williams has been in the spotlight since before he arrived at USC, following Trojans coach Lincoln Riley to Southern California after playing his freshman season with the Oklahoma Sooners. Williams won the Heisman Trophy with Riley as his mentor, and now the former Trojans quarterback has another quarterback guru leading his team.

How Johnson and William navigate the season for the Bears will be must-see television for fans, and the eyes of the football world will be tuned in.