Ben Johnson was an offensive guy. That often comes with a reputation in the NFL. Most offensive-minded coaches are interested in cutting-edge football. They want surgical precision. Old school ideas are something they scoff at. That is what leads to them earning a reputation as finesse coaches. They’re less interested in outmuscling opponents compared to outsmarting them. When he arrived to take over the Chicago Bears in January, Johnson carried a similar tag. That bruising style of football he called in Detroit was more the identity of head coach Dan Campbell.
Johnson seemed to take that personally. It didn’t take long for Bears players to figure out that this coach has some throwback in his blood. His practices were demanding and tough. However, nothing prepared them for what happened during the first week of the preseason. According to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times, Johnson wanted to send a message. What followed was what many onlookers called the most physical practice a Bears team had conducted in at least 20 years.
It turns out there was a specific reason for this approach that Johnson didn’t mention afterwards.
On Aug. 5, Johnson ran what most Bears veterans called the most physical practice of their careers. Wearing full pads on Field 1 at Halas Hall, the Bears ran through their most taxing drills and tackled each other to the ground, a rarity at the pro level. Some players left with injuries. At times it was hard to tell which drills featured live tackling and which ones weren’t supposed to. They all blurred together in a pile of hitting, blocking and jawing.
At the end of practice, however, the team huddled. Johnson had a smile on his face.
“It sets a tone,” Jarrett said. “I was happy to see the call get answered.”
Johnson had told his players before practice that the Bears needed physical play to callous themselves for late-season rigors — the Bears have the earliest bye in the NFL, in Week 5 — but also to help build up their own identity.
Ben Johnson recognized a common issue with this Bears team.
It has a troubling track record of fading down the stretch of seasons. They’d sometimes get off to a great start, but as the year progressed into the second half, they would lose steam. Last year was another example. They started 3-2 and won three straight going into the bye. They proceeded to lose ten in a row, characterized by a complete disintegration in December.
Meanwhile, Detroit seemed to play its best football in December, going 3-1 with its only loss being a 48-42 shootout to Buffalo. That was because the Lions were well-prepared for the physical toll of a long season. Ben Johnson aims to get the Bears in a similar mindset. The only way to do that is by putting them through it in practice.
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