Caleb Williams needed lots of help going into this offseason. Clearly, the Chicago Bears had not built a proper support structure for their young quarterback. Sure, they’d added plenty of intriguing weapons in the passing game, but it didn’t matter much when he was constantly harassed due to poor protection and even worse coaching. If they didn’t want to ruin another quarterback, they had to throw every resource available into fixing those problems. By far their most important move was hiring Ben Johnson, the Detroit Lions offensive coordinator who’d guided his unit to a top 10 finish every year he was in charge.
The numbers speak for themselves. Detroit had the highest scoring offense last year and never finished lower than fifth. They were second in passing twice and at least sixth in rushing twice. His offense is no joke. It functions at a high level across the board. Yet people want to know how he’ll help Williams ascend to become the quarterback they know he can be. Longtime quarterback expert Greg Cosell was asked about this on [670 The Score](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXjxLoLAxis&ab_channel=670TheScore). His answer came down to one thing that Johnson does better than most: wide receiver spacing.
He makes things easier for his quarterback. Look back throughout history, and you’ll find that many of the greatest quarterbacks had coaches who did this. Joe Montana and Steve Young had Bill Walsh. John Elway had Mike Shanahan. Peyton Manning had Tom Moore. Tom Brady had Josh McDaniels. Such coaches are difficult to find, which goes a long way to explain why the Bears haven’t had great quarterback play for decades. Name the last coach they had who was considered an offensive wizard. You can’t. That has finally changed with Ben Johnson. His ability to create ways for his players to find space is essential for offensive success. Williams saw none of that last year and still had a decent season. Imagine what he’ll be like with constant open lanes to throw to.
