Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Chicago Bears' best decision of 2025 offseason revealed

Originally posted on Chicago Bears on SI
By Pete Martuneac | Last updated Jul 16, 2025 11:52 AM ET

The 2024 NFL season was supposed to be the beginning of something special for the Chicago Bears. Instead, it proved to be the end of arguably the worst era in Chicago Bears history. It got so bad that the Bears broke with 105 years of tradition by firing former head coach Matt Eberflus midseason.

Happily for Bears fans, the front office did not stop breaking with tradition there; yet another uncharacteristic move made shortly after their season ended may prove to be the best decision yet made by GM Ryan Poles.

Writing for Pro Football Focus, NFL analyst Dalton Wasserman selected a 'best decision' for each team's offseason. For the Bears, he went with the no-brainer of hiring Ben Johnson to be their next head coach. Regarding this hire, Wasserman writes, "The Bears made a slew of offseason moves, particularly on offense, that should significantly improve their team. All were borne out of new head coach Ben Johnson's vision."

Wasserman went on to lay out all the excellent roster additions made by the Bears over the past few months, from the trade for Joe Thuney to the drafting of Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III, and links them directly to the hiring of Johnson. Without his gifted offensive mind in Halas Hall to lay out a specific vision for the future, Chicago might well still be mired in the doldrums of mediocrity.

Concluding his analysis, Wasserman points out that " the onus is now on quarterback Caleb Williams to improve upon a mediocre rookie season ." This is true, and it's by far the biggest storyline for the Bears this season, even bigger than whether Johnson, a first-time head coach, can make the leap from hotshot offensive coordinator to a winning head coach.

If Williams can't take significant strides forward under the tutelage of Johnson, who breathed new life into another former first-overall pick's career in Jared Goff, while working with a better roster than at least half of the NFL's starting quarterbacks have, then he will likely become just another headstone in Chicago's quarterback graveyard.

But there's plenty of reason to believe that this won't be the case. Johnson is as promising as a first-time head coach can be, and he clearly has been given a large say in roster construction. The (obvious) decision to hire Johnson is not only Chicago's best move of the offseason, but it could very well become one of the most pivotal moments in the franchise's history.

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

More must-reads: